Binance is approaching a potential agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to eliminate the requirement for an outside compliance monitor from its $4.3 billion money laundering settlement reached in 2023. According to Bloomberg News reports from September 16, the Justice Department is considering removing this oversight mechanism as part of a broader policy shift under the Trump administration.
The three-year monitorship requirement was part of Binance's historic settlement, one of the largest corporate penalties in U.S. history, which resolved allegations that the exchange failed to prevent money laundering through its platform. As part of the original settlement, Binance founder Changpeng Zhao served a four-month prison sentence and had sought a presidential pardon from Trump during a May podcast appearance.
The policy shift follows guidance from Matthew Galeotti, head of the DOJ's Criminal Division, who earlier this year questioned the effectiveness of mandatory corporate oversight. The department's memo stated that monitors "can also impose substantial expense and interfere with lawful business operations" while acknowledging their role in preventing repeat violations.
The Justice Department has already terminated independent oversight for three companies that accepted monitors under Biden administration settlements, including Glencore Plc units which accumulated $142 million in monitoring costs between 2023 and 2024 before prosecutors ended their oversight requirements.
If approved, Binance would likely face enhanced compliance reporting obligations as a substitute for the monitor removal. The exchange maintains two separate monitors from its DOJ settlement and Treasury Department agreement with FinCEN, with the Treasury monitor remaining active while prosecutors consider the DOJ oversight requirement.