Unverified Rumor of Interpol Red Notice for Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao Sends BNB, Bitcoin Lower

Binance’s exchange coin BNB quickly slumped by more than 3% late Monday afternoon on an unverified rumor that an Interpol Red Notice had been issued for exchange founder and CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao.

“Interpol Red Notice for CZ,” read an encrypted message from well-followed Crypto Twitter user Cobie. The message was tweeted in a sequence of letters and numbers encrypted using the SHA-256 hash function, the same cryptography that secures many cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin.

Spokespersons for Binance and Interpol did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

AHHHHH IM HEARING THINGS

brb withdrawing a decent chunk just in case. pic.twitter.com/2weMwBMP7C

— hyuk (@hyuktrades) April 3, 2023

The rumor comes days after Binance and Zhao were sued by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission over “willful evasion” of U.S. laws. The CFTC lawsuit also sparked fears that an impending U.S. Department of Justice lawsuit could soon follow, along with potential criminal charges.

“A Red Notice is a request to law enforcement worldwide to locate and provisionally arrest a person pending extradition, surrender, or similar legal action,” according to the Interpol website. "The individuals are wanted by the requesting member country, or international tribunal," the site added.

BNB fell nearly 4% in the minutes following the posting, and as of press time was down 3.5% over the past 24 hours. Bitcoin (BTC) took a modest hit alongside, sliding a bit more than 1% to $27,770.