Binance Holdings Ltd. has been sued by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for allegedly violating investment laws in the country. The financial regulators said the crypto company misused funds and engaged in a "web of deception."

As per BBC News, Binance also set up "sham controls" so it can continue its business operations in the U.S. The commission is alleging that Binance artificially inflated its trading volumes and diverted customer assets. This means the SEC found the company lying; thus, it is actually operating in the country illegally.

The regulators also included Binance's chief executive officer, Changpeng Zhao, in the lawsuit. The charges come as the financial watchdogs vowed to use its laws to aggressively watch and supervise the crypto business market in the region.

The case filed by the SEC follows a complaint brought in by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission against Binance earlier this year. In response to the newest lawsuit, the crypto firm's founder, Changpeng Zhao, said that he and his company had not seen the charges by the securities exchange.

"Through thirteen charges, we allege that Zhao and Binance entities engaged in an extensive web of deception, conflicts of interest, lack of disclosure, and calculated evasion of the law," Gary Gensler, the chairman of the U.S. SEC, said in a press release. "As alleged, Zhao and Binance misled investors about their risk controls and corrupted trading volumes while actively concealing who was operating the platform, the manipulative trading of its affiliated market maker, and even where and with whom investor funds and crypto assets were custodied."

He added, "They attempted to evade U.S. securities laws by announcing sham controls that they disregarded behind the scenes so that they could keep high-value U.S. customers on their platforms."

In any case, Zhao said they will respond once the complaint is laid before him. He revealed via social media that they are "standing by" to make sure that Binance's platform remains stable.

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