Changpeng Zhao's Possible Successor At Binance Emerges — Who Is Richard Teng?

Richard Teng, a 52-year-old civil servant-turned-crypto executive who is currently the head of all regional markets outside the United States for Binance is reportedly a possible heir to Binance’s embattled CEO, Changpeng “CZ” Zhao.

What Happened: CZ is currently facing mounting regulatory scrutiny from US federal agencies, as well as regulators in Canada, Australia, and Dubai.

Teng joined Binance in August 2021 as Singapore CEO after a meteoric rise to his current position in less than two years. He has since been given oversight of Europe, the Middle East, North Africa and Asia.

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Why It Matters: Teng has played a significant role in Binance’s expansion into various regions and regulatory milestones. In late May, Zhao appointed him as head of all regional markets outside the US, a position that has made Teng a likely successor to CZ, should he relinquish his position, reported Bloomberg.

Teng worked for 13 years at the Monetary Authority of Singapore before joining the Singapore stock exchange as the chief regulatory officer. 

He later spent six years as the CEO of Abu Dhabi Global Market before joining Binance.

Binance stands as the largest cryptocurrency exchange platform globally, enabling users to carry out various digital currency transactions such as Bitcoin BTC/USD and Ethereum ETH/USD, among others.

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