The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recently filed a lawsuit against Changpeng Zhao, the CEO of cryptocurrency exchange Binance, and Binance over alleged unregistered securities operations.
In an effort to serve Zhao with a court summons, the SEC asked the US District Court in Washington DC for an “alternative service” on June 7. The request was made due to the difficulty in locating the Binance CEO, as there is no known base of operations for him.
On March 28, Binance spokesperson Dewy Mustajab said that Zhao splits his time between France and Dubai, sparking rumours that he could be in Dubai. The SEC is also seeking permission from the court to serve CZ lawyers on his behalf.
In addition, the SEC requested that the court order Changpeng Zhao and Binance to deliver a “sworn accounting” — a formal disclosure of financial data — right away. The lawsuit claims that the SEC has not been able to determine the full extent of the defendant’s assets, the precise location of investor funds, or the condition or location of other assets that might be used to satisfy a monetary judgment against the defendant.
Changpeng Zhao himself tweeted that he was told the summons is just part of the SEC complaint process and that he won’t have to appear in person.
Nevertheless, the courts typically require some form of service to occur even if the defendant isn’t required to appear.
