Binance disbands its Global Advisory Board, key UK ally jumps ship

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—by Protos Staff

A member of the UK’s House of Lords, Edward Vaizey, has stepped down from his advisory role at Binance after the crypto exchange reportedly disbanded its Global Advisory Board.

On July 12, a Telegraph reporter discovered that the board was disbanded and now resembled something closer to a ‘formal board of directors.’

Indeed, a Binance spokesperson told Protos it has implemented “a new global governance structure, which includes a board of directors including three independent directors, as well as Audit and Finance, Compliance and Risk, and other committees.”

It added, “We are grateful for the contributions of the Global Advisory Board over the past 24 months since its creation.”

Lord Vaizey joined Binance in September 2022 when it originally announced the formation of the advisory board. He told the Telegraph at the time that the role “won’t involve me lobbying the FCA to regulate,” adding that the idea, “hadn’t even come into my head.”

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Intelligence Online reported today that Lord Vaizey joined the US crypto firm Io.net in late June. The company, formerly known as Antbit, offers GPU access while claiming to be the ‘largest decentralized computing network.’

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has not allowed Binance to conduct any regulated activity in the UK since 2021. As of October 2023, unregulated overseas crypto firms were allowed to promote their business in the UK provided they were approved by an FCA-authorised firm. 

Binance, however, has reportedly struggled to find a firm to approve it, being rejected by three FCA-approved firms and as such remains barred from the UK market. 

Since Lord Vaizey joined as a Binance advisor, the firm and its former CEO Changpeng Zhao has pleaded guilty to criminal charges, the exchange is being monitored by the US Department of Justice, and one of its executives is in a Nigerian prison awaiting a hearing over charges of currency manipulation and money laundering.

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