Enigmatic Binance chief executive Changpeng ‘CZ’ Zhao has responded to more inflammatory reporting from Reuters in his latest rebuke of their journalism.
In a blog post penned on Oct. 17, CZ addressed the issue between himself personally, the company, and Reuters reporters who had reached out again for another story.
Two particular Reuters reporters, Angus Berwick and Tom Wilson, have repeatedly targeted Binance and its CEO this year with a series of scathing reports.
Headlines ranged from how Binance “kept weak money-laundering checks,” to how it became a “hub for hackers, fraudsters, and drug traffickers.” The latest report, on Oct. 17, accuses CZ of “plotting to dodge regulators in U.S. and UK.”
Zhao has accused the pair of biased reporting “solely from anonymous sources,” it is not the first time he has refuted their reporting.
CZ on Reuters: Crossing the line
His primary beef this time did not appear to be the misuse of facts but the involvement of his family.
“What’s unique this time is that they’ve signaled a new low and have crossed the line into indefensible territory. They have signaled an intent to report about my children.”
CZ said that Binance has been working with global law enforcement agencies to seize the assets of criminal organizations. His well-justified fear is that the reporters would be knowingly putting his toddlers in harm’s way by publishing information about them. “This is unprincipled and intolerable,” he added.
Binance has therefore refused to respond with Reuters any further as they did not offer assurances that his family would not be reported on. He chose instead to take the story to the community by providing details on the accusations the outlet has been making.
The first issue was the company’s commitment to compliance and its fight against criminal activity. Anyone that uses Binance will notice more KYC requirements, and the firm has been pivotal in helping recover stolen funds.
Secretive Binance offices and Tai Chi
Reuters has also attacked CZ’s leadership style and the secretive locations of their offices. CZ explained that some were kept secret for the safety of staff due to the fact that the company works with law enforcement.
There was also a rebuttal of a “Tai Chi PowerPoint” document that was submitted by a consultant on how to set up a company in the U.S. CZ rejected the document and Binance.US was set up with leading law firms.
CZ concluded that he would like to “A) have strong, open relationships with reporters at all outlets and, more importantly, B) keep my family safe. Without assurances of B, I can’t commit to A.”
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