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Correction (November 29, 9:15 pm): This article was updated to state that Kenneth Stern left in July, not in November 2023
Kenneth Stern, who headed Binance’s operations in the Philippines as general manager, has exited the company. According to an earlier update on his LinkedIn profile, Stern’s role at Binance ended in November 2023. However, Binance claims that Stern departed earlier this year.
According to a Binance spokesperson, Stern left the team in July 2023. Stern later on told Tech in Asia that his departure was in July, adding he has “no future plans yet.”
The news comes amid Philippines’ Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announcing an advisory against Binance, stating that the online crypto exchange is “not authorized to sell or offer securities to the public in the Philippines.” The advisory also stated that Binance is not registered as a corporation in the Philippines.
Tech in Asia has reached out to Binance for more details.
The Philippine SEC said it will revoke local access to Binance within three months following the issuance of the advisory. This timeframe allows Filipino investors to finalize the closure of their positions and withdraw their investments.
Regulators have also requested Google and Meta to block Binance’s online advertisements to Filipino users.
This comes after Binance’s founder and CEO, Changpeng Zhao, stepped down from his role after he pleaded guilty to violating US anti-money laundering laws. As part of the agreement, Zhao is prohibited from assuming a management position in the company for the next three years.
Binance has named Richard Teng as the firm’s new CEO. Previously, Teng served as the company’s global head of regional markets.
Late last year, Binance announced that it was in the process of acquiring a Philippine-based company as part of an effort to obtain regulatory licenses in the Philippines. At the time, Stern commented that the company was in “late-stage talks” and “on track” to acquire virtual assets service provider (VASP) and electronic money issuer (EMI) licenses.
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Editing by Putra Muskita, Collin Furtado, and Jaclyn Tiu
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