Silicon Valley Tech News Roundup – June 18th
Binance investigated in France, exits the Netherlands market – 6/17
Based on the reports from La Monde, the French authorities are investigating Binance, the largest cryptocurrency exchange. The focus of the investigation is its anti-money laundering procedures.
Binance’s spokesperson confirmed the visit by the French authorities: “We had an on-site visit last week by the relevant authorities. Binance, as always, was fully collaborative, and we met our obligations accordingly. We continue to work closely with regulators and law enforcement agencies on all ongoing compliance requirements to uphold high standards.”
The news about the investigation comes after the company announced it departed the Netherlands after it did not obtain the required license from the Dutch central bank.
In the United States, Binance and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) came to an agreement. It enables the company to continue operating and not get its assets frozen as SEC requested. Based on the court filing obtained by the New York Times, Binance agreed to move all US customers’ assets back into the country. Likewise, Binance.US can only transfer assets “to make payments for expenses or to satisfy obligations incurred in the ordinary course of business”. Binance’s international employees also cannot access all new customer wallets created. The authorities banned Binance.US from allowing access to US customers’ assets to Zhao or the company’s international operation.
Zhao tweeted about the agreement: “Although we maintain that the SEC’s request for emergency relief was entirely unwarranted, we are pleased that the disagreement over this request was resolved on mutually acceptable terms… User funds have been and always will be safe and secure on all Binance-affiliated platforms.”
Bill Gates meets with President Xi Jinping – 6/17
On Friday, Bill Gates met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing. He traveled to China as the co-chairman of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
President Xi Jinping said of the meeting: “I often say that the foundation of Sino-US relations is among the people, and we always look to the American people and hope that the two peoples will continue to be friendly.” Also, according to the reports from the Chinese state media, he said Gates was “the first American friend” he met in Beijing this year.
Gates is not the only business leader to visit China in recent months. Tim Cook (Apple), Elon Musk (Tesla), and Jamie Dimon (JP Morgan) visited China recently. They met with senior Chinese government officials but did not meet with President Xi Jinping.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit China this weekend. He is the first cabinet official to visit China since 2019. But experts predict not much will get accomplished to ease the tensions between the two countries.
Foxconn to make a switch to electric cars – 6/16
Young Liu (the Chairman of Foxconn) discussed the future of the Taiwanese company in an exclusive interview with the BBC. Foxconn manufactures over half of Apple products. Sony, Dell, Microsoft, and Amazon are also clients. Liu revealed the company is moving some of its supply chains from China and plans to shift some of its focus to electric cars. The ongoing tensions between the US and China are causing the implemented changes.
Liu stated the company has to prepare for the worst: “We hope peace and stability will be something the leaders of these two countries will keep in mind… But as a business, as a CEO, I have to think about what if the worst case happens?”
Liu confirmed the company is already putting in place “business continuity planning” and some production lines (particularly those connected with national security products) would move from China to Mexico and Vietnam. Liu also spoke about the plans to capture about 5% of the global electric vehicle market in the coming years. Liu said: “It doesn’t make sense for you to make [EVs] in one place, so regionalized production for cars is very natural.” The company plans to open car factories in Thailand, Indonesia, Ohio, and possibly India.
Jack Ma (the Founder of Alibaba) is alive and well – 6/15
Michael Evans (the President of Alibaba) confirmed Jack Ma (the Founder of Alibaba) is alive and well. Evans shared the news at the Viva Tech Conference in Paris. Evans stated after Maurice Levy (the Chairman of the Publicis, the French advertising group) inquired about Ma’s whereabouts: “Well, first of all, Jack is alive. He’s well, he’s happy. He’s creative. He’s thinking. He’s teaching at a university in Tokyo, spending more time in China.”
Evans also confirmed Ma is still the biggest shareholder in the company: “This is his company. So he cares … as much about this company today, as he did when he started, and I expect that that will continue for as long as Alibaba and Jack Ma are here.”
In November 2020., Ma and his company Ant Group (Alibaba’s financial technology affiliate) had to cancel its public offering due to a regulator crackdown. In 2021, Alibaba had to pay a $2.8 billion antitrust fine. Around the same time, Jack Ma disappeared from public life, which led to speculation he was missing. He resurfaced in Europe later in the year, and reports placed him in China earlier this year.
