said a former SEC official

Binance.US and the Securities and Exchange Commission have reached an agreement that avoids freezing the exchange’s assets in exchange for more transparency and oversight, according to a approval order It was approved this morning.

The approval order, signed by US District Judge Amy Berman Jackson, comes after the SEC filed an emergency order last week calling for assets held by Binance to be frozen.

The subsequent agreement still results in the repatriation of assets, with Binance agreeing to ensure that a pair of Binance.US holding companies “will maintain possession, custody and control of all fiat and cryptocurrency assets that are deposited, held, exchanged or traded in the United States.” owed by customers.”

Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao posted a short statement on Twitter this morning, reassuring clients that “user funds are and always will be safe on all platforms affiliated with Binance.”

“Although we maintain that the SEC’s request for emergency relief was not entirely justified, we are pleased that the dispute over that request was resolved on mutually acceptable terms,” ​​he wrote.

John Reed Stark, a cybersecurity consultant and former head of the SEC’s Office of Internet Enforcement, called the agreement “unprecedented, sweeping, and arduous.”

“This approval order will be one of the most burdensome, embarrassing, inconvenient, and far-reaching cryptocurrency orders in SEC history,” Stark noted on Twitter. “The SEC has been given a similar role to Binance’s independent advisor, a compensation often given to the SEC after the SEC prevails in an enforcement proceeding.”

The agreement gives Binance 45 days to provide the SEC with a list of every account or wallet it has managed since December 1, 2022, along with the financial institutions and their associated account numbers. Binance must also produce a record of asset transfers of more than $1,000 in the same time period, along with the names of the recipients and the reasons for the transfer.

For the SEC’s concerns about Binance.US solvency, the agreement requires information about “burdens or limitations that make it unavailable for transfer or withdrawal by customers… and whether there are sufficient assets to meet customer obligations or satisfy customer claims.” their own clients. assets held on their behalf within 10 calendar days of the submission of such application.”

Binance.US must also ensure that access to or control over the assets is not granted to Binance, its CEO Changpeng Zhao “or any entity owned or controlled by Zhao.”

Finally, Binance.US will have to file monthly reports with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) covering “normal cycle business expenses.”

All of this is set as the SEC’s civil suit goes to trial, for which Judge Jackson provides 90 days of “urgent discovery” by the SEC.

“Should any Binance defendant violate any provision of this order, the US Department of Justice can intervene and file obstruction-related charges,” Stark noted. So don’t fail at your peril, Binance.