Did Stéphanie Cabossioras commit illegal interest harvesting by leaving the Financial Markets Authority (AMF) to join Binance France? This is the accusation of the Anticor association, which turned to the courts. Focus on a case that could be hot for the former director of the stock exchange, which draws attention to her arrival on French soil.
The report focuses on Stéphanie Cabossioras for her move from AMF to Binance France
Stéphanie Cabossioras is a senior civil servant trained as a judge at the Court of Auditors and former Deputy Director of Legal Affairs at the Financial Markets Authority (AMF). Her arrival at Binance France, initially as legal director, has therefore already been commented on. At the time, the exchange platform sought to demonstrate its credentials to regulators win sesame: Digital Asset Service Provider (PSAN) status.
👉 Go further – What is PSAN and how to get this status?
Stéphanie Cabossioras then became the general manager of Binance France, but her reign was short-lived as she left the position last October, less than a year after her rise. In time, when, Little has been said about the reasons for this departure. However, this week, a report from the Anticor association once again draws attention to this passage from the former AMF executive for Binance.
Anti-corruption group she just sent a message to the courts. He criticizes Stéphanie Cabossioras for joining Binance France at a crucial moment: just a month before Binance received PSAN status. However, this status is granted by the AMF: the association thus associates the arrival of a senior official with the supply of sesame.
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Illegal solicitation of interests of a former high civil servant?
Anticor points out that the AMF registration process is usually based on extensive verification, especially with regard to managers. However, as early as 2018, Binance became the target of an investigation by the US Treasury Department. It should also be noted that as of February 2022, a few months before the arrival of Stéphanie Cabossioras, Binance France has become the target of an investigation by the Paris prosecutor’s office for soliciting customers without prior permission.
According to the lawyer of the Anticor association, the arrival of the AMF executive to Binance France at this crucial moment will therefore be a common case :
” (Shows) insufficient awareness of the risks of conflict of interest in the case of a return trip between the public and private sectors in France. »
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When asked by Agence France-Presse (AFP), Binance responded to the news with an explanation that the transfer of Stéphanie Cabossioras was completely legal :
” Stéphanie Cabossioras received permission from the AMF (for its conversion), of which the ethics commission remains the only one capable of formulating authorizations or prohibitions. This is standard procedure and Binance actually waited until it was finalized to formally hire Stéphanie Cabossioras.»
If this transfer was legal, it is not said whether Stéphanie Cabossioras used its connection with AMF to speed up the process for Binance, allowing it to obtain PSAN status despite international legal difficulties. According to Anticor, this could be illegal solicitation of interests, a crime punishable by up to 5 years in prison.
Member of Parliament Aurore Lalucq, known for her very anti-crypto positioning, welcomed the news, which he describes as a “scandal” :
“Binance”: this name probably doesn’t mean anything to you.
And yet it is one of the biggest scandals of the five-year term @emmanuelmacron 🧵 pic.twitter.com/w76fycNMrx
— Aurore Lalucq 🇪🇺 (@AuroreLalucq) December 13, 2023
The case, launched a year and a half after the fact, is also similar to a complaint filed in late 2022 by Binance investors. They criticize the French government, including Emmanuel Macron and Cédric O. for showing “satisfaction” by opening Binance’s armswhile the platform was not yet authorized to advertise in France.
Suspicions surrounding the registration of Binance as a digital asset service provider have therefore been raised for a long time and the Anticor report may lead to a scandal in France. The exchange, which has already run into trouble in recent months, could thus face a major new legal case after its CEO Changpeng Zhao was forced to jump ship after being found guilty of violating antitrust laws – money laundering.
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Source: Le Figaro, BFM
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