Scott Taylor, a spokesperson for the Bureau of Prisons, confirmed Zhao was released from a halfway house in Long Beach, California, on Friday. He had reported to a low-security facility in June to serve his four-month sentence.
Zhao had also agreed to pay a US$50 million ($64 million) personal fine. Binance paid US$4.3 billion in penalties to settle a case that involved a litany of alarming allegations linked to violations of anti-money laundering and sanctions laws. As part of the settlement, Zhao stepped down as Binance’s chief executive and is not allowed to have an executive role in the company.
Even with the turmoil, the trading platform remains one of the most-important crypto exchanges. Zhao’s net worth is still estimated at around $30 billion, according to a Bloomberg Wealth estimate.
Binance is now led by Richard Teng, who previously served as the head regulator for Abu Dhabi Global Market.
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Yi He, the mother of three of Zhao’s children and one of the co-founders of Binance, also remains an important figure at Binance.
The exchange named its first board of directors in April, though it has yet to announce a global headquarters after previously characterising itself as a virtual company.
Before Zhao’s sentencing, he announced a new endeavor called Giggle Academy, a non-profit online education platform. When Zhao stepped down in November, he also noted in a message that he’d also be open to “being a coach/mentor” to upcoming entrepreneurs.
