Changpeng Zhao will be stepping down as the CEO of Binance as part of a plea deal for violating anti-money laundering rules to the tune of $4 billion between the Department of Justice and his firm. 

According to a report by Forbes, Mr Zhao will, however, maintain his majority ownership of the firm after pleading guilty to anti-money laundering charges brought by the Department of Justice. 

He was scheduled to enter the plea in federal court in Seattle on Tuesday afternoon. 

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission had filed a lawsuit against Binance Holdings Ltd and Mr Zhao for allegedly failing to restrict U.S. customers from the platform and misleading investors about market surveillance controls. 

The American regulatory agency filed the complaint on Monday in federal court in Washington, DC, listing 13 charges against Binance and Mr Zhao. 

According to reports, the U.S. government is accusing Binance and Mr Zhao of allegedly “controlling customers” assets and allowing them to commingle and divert customer funds, alleging that Binance had created separate U.S. entities “as part of an elaborate scheme to evade U.S. federal securities laws”.