- Binance’s founder says challenges with regulators will steel the resolve of the exchange’s employees.
- In recent months, the exchange has come under fire over non-compliance issues with regulatory agencies, casting a shadow of doubt over its future.
Despite the regulatory headwinds against Binance, the exchange’s CEO Changpeng Zhao claims that camaraderie amongst employees is at its zenith as he shares the “secret” for building resilient teams.
On July 10, the embattled CEO took to Twitter to reveal the formula for building a hardy team spirit in the face of mounting challenges. According to Zhao, the secret lies in the right amount of “external pressure” designed to forge a resilient culture in the workplace.
He pressed his point home using the analogy of an alien invasion of Earth, noting that “all the issues between the US and China would disappear in a heartbeat.” Zhao noted that fancy team-building dinners and coaching exercises may assist in building resilience but has the flaw of being only a temporary measure.
“While I’m not suggesting the pressure needs to be life-threatening, fighting in the trenches together is the best way to build time teams,” said Zhao. “It builds resilience, alliance, resilience and most importantly trust between the team members.”
Zhao added that while adversity may create internal trust, companies can foster external trust through “collaboration and cooperation,” citing Binance as an example of a resilient team.
Binance has been in the eye of the storm in recent weeks as the exchange, following allegations of financial impropriety by US regulators and an investigation from French authorities for aggravated money laundering. Things went from bad to worse after the exchange was forced to exit Dutch markets, and a fresh investigation from Australian officials seemed to compound Binance’s regulatory woes.
“If the allegations against Binance are true, they implicate very serious criminal and civil misconduct, including national-security related issues,” remarked Alex Zerden, CEO of Capital Peak Strategies.
A crack in the wall for Binance
Despite claims of a resilient team, there appears to be a mass exit of leading executives at the exchange. Binance’’s Chief Strategy Officer and Senior Vice President of Compliance left their roles at the company with multiple reports claiming the exits were linked to a probe by the US Department of Justice.
However, Zhao hit back at the claims saying that the exits are normal occurrences in the lifespan of every company, confirming that Binance will “continue to hire” new staff to fill existing vacancies.
Early in the year, the company lost Matthew Price as its Global Head of Intelligence and Investigations, while Brian Brooks left his role as Binance.US CEO in 2021, only three months after his appointment.