Binance Denies Red Notice Rumors

Table of Contents

• Encrypted Message Spreads Rumors
• BNB Drops
• Binance’s Regulatory Troubles
• What Is Red Notice? 

The Binance crypto exchange has denied rumors of its CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ) being served with the infamous Red Notice by Interpol. 

Encrypted Message Spreads Rumors

Is CZ facing Red Notice charges? The Binance team claims otherwise. A spokesperson from the world’s largest crypto exchange denied the rumor that the firm’s CEO is facing a Red Notice issued by the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) for his arrest. 

The rumor first spread from a recent tweet from Cobie. The latter’s Twitter account has a significantly high follower count, which resulted in the rapid spread of this misinformation. Earlier on Tuesday, Cobie tweeted out an encrypted message using the SHA-256 hash function. This is the same cryptography that forms the security basis for cryptos like Bitcoin. After decrypting the message, which was posted as just a sequence of letters and numbers, it read, “Interpol Red Notice for CZ.” 

BNB Drops

Unfortunately, as is the case with such rumors, the misinformation took hold in the public mindset, resulting in significant FUD in the market. Thanks to Cobie’s high follower base, the rumor spread rapidly and reflected the results in the market value of the Binance Coin (BNB) price. The coin dropped by 3% from the FUD stirred by the rumor, even though trading volumes shot up 55% in the 24 hours following the tweet. 

Binance’s Regulatory Troubles

Binance has been in some regulatory hot water recently. CEO Zhao is already facing charges of federal law violations by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). There is also speculation that the lawsuit might lead to action from the Department of Justice (DOJ) soon. Furthermore, the company’s senior executives have also been accused of hiding their connections with China. Therefore, the rumor of the Red Notice was so easily believed by the masses. 

CZ has already tried his best to reassure the community, even penning an official letter to address the concerns of non-compliance. In the letter, he wrote that the company had always maintained transparency with law enforcement agencies and complied with all registration and licensing requirements. 

What Is Red Notice? 

However, Interpol reserves the issuance of a Red Notice for more severe matters. Recent Red Notices issued against individuals in the crypto sphere include the scammer Ruja Ignatova, also called Cryptoqueen, and the founder of the now defunct-Terraform Labs, Do Kwon. Both of them had multiple charges of fraud and criminal activities and were absconding at the time of the issuance. 

As per the Interpol website, a Red Notice against an individual is a request to law enforcement agencies everywhere to locate and provisionally arrest them before extradition, surrender, or similar legal charges. A person charged with a Red Notice is wanted by the requesting member country of Interpol or by an international tribunal. 

Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.