Forbes Investigation: Who is Heina Chen, the Financial Steward Behind Binance?

Authors: John Hyatt, Giacomo Tognini, David Jeans, and Sarah Emerson, Forbes

Original Title: 《Meet 'Heina' Chen, The Secretive Executive Holding The Purse Strings At Binance》

Translated by: Hu Tao, ChainCatcher

In the massive lawsuit by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission against the cryptocurrency exchange Binance and its founder Changpeng Zhao, one name keeps coming up: Guangying "Heina" Chen.

When Binance established its U.S. entity in 2019, Chen's name was listed as a signatory on its bank accounts. When Zhao Changpeng set up a secret company in Switzerland, allegedly inflating the number of crypto assets on Binance.US, Chen's name appeared on bank accounts and onboarding documents. In the SEC's complaint against Binance for "fraudulently inflating trading volumes," the agency mentioned a "back-end manager" executing false trades: likewise, Chen.

Chen appears to have no formal title at Binance and has not made public appearances, although documents obtained by the SEC refer to her role as "Chief Financial Officer." The company did not publicly acknowledge Chen's existence until September of last year, when Zhao Changpeng downplayed her role in overseeing "management and settlement" in a blog post. However, a Forbes investigation found that Chen controls more bank accounts and serves on more boards of Binance entities than any other executive besides CEO Zhao Changpeng.

She is currently a director of eight major companies under Binance and is a signatory on dozens of bank accounts for 27 entities registered in 13 countries, overseeing the company's finances and accounts that have processed $148 billion in deposits and withdrawals since 2019. The bank accounts at Signature Bank and Silvergate Bank—both of which collapsed in March—were all closed or had zero balances by May of this year.

"Heina is a trusted person of CZ," said a former Binance executive who worked with Chen and Zhao Changpeng. "She is the gateway to Binance's treasury."

Forbes reviewed court records, land deeds, and corporate documents from China, Malta, Singapore, Switzerland, and Turkey, as well as interviews with four former Binance employees and an external consultant who painted a portrait of an elusive cryptocurrency leader who follows Zhao Changpeng around the world. According to court documents, since 2019, Chen has paid herself at least $32 million while also signing off on some of Binance's most dubious and significant business deals, which allegedly artificially inflated trading volumes on the platform to attract customers and investors—central to the SEC's fraud allegations. The SEC claims she also played a key role in overseeing multiple entities that Zhao Changpeng used to fund his lavish lifestyle, including the purchase of a $55 million jet and a $11 million yacht.

Such transactions are now at the heart of Binance's regulatory woes, with extensive investigations by the SEC and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. The exchange is also reportedly facing a Department of Justice investigation over allegations that Binance or its executives violated Russian sanctions and anti-money laundering laws, with Senator Elizabeth Warren calling for a probe into the company's alleged lies to Congress. (Binance responded to Warren's letter, stating that the company "supports a comprehensive review of regulations in the U.S." and "takes compliance very seriously.")

In a statement released on June 5, Binance expressed "disappointment" with the SEC's complaint, stating that the company would "vigorously defend" against any allegations that user assets on Binance.US are at risk. Chen and the company did not respond to requests for comment on the matter.

While Zhao Changpeng's cryptocurrency empire has survived the collapse of its biggest competitor FTX and the crisis that led to the downfall of crypto lending platforms Celsius and Genesis, it now faces an existential threat. Binance, which claims to have no headquarters, has exited or been banned in at least 10 countries. In April, Australian authorities revoked the financial services license of Binance's Australian subsidiary, leading to its withdrawal from payment providers. In May, the Ontario Securities Commission launched an investigation into whether Binance was circumventing provincial securities laws, prompting Binance to exit Canada two days later and subsequently apply to withdraw the investigation.

Since the SEC's allegations became public, Binance's trading volume has dropped by 32%. In the U.S., Binance serves over 5 million customers, with trading volume down more than 75%, and the SEC has sought to freeze over $2.6 billion in assets, effectively halting Binance's operations in its largest market. Binance suspended all dollar deposits for its U.S. division last week.

"[The SEC] is not interested in any resolution that would allow Binance to operate in any form close to its current state," said Renato Mariotti, a former prosecutor in the Department of Justice's Securities and Commodities Fraud Division.

Despite the setbacks, Zhao Changpeng remains one of the wealthiest individuals in the cryptocurrency space; Forbes estimates his net worth at least $10 billion, though this figure could be much higher depending on how much profit Zhao has retained from Binance. SEC records and corporate documents from 30 jurisdictions reviewed by Forbes indicate that Zhao owns 100% of Binance's international business and 81% of Binance.US.

The mysterious Chen continues to control Zhao Changpeng's and Binance's assets. "Heina has all the control," said a former Binance executive.

At one point, Binance attempted to acquire a bank in Liechtenstein but failed; Binance's CFO Wei Zhou negotiated the deal and met with local regulators. However, according to two insiders and bank documents seen by Forbes, it was Chen who transferred $5 million from Binance's bank account held at Bank Frick & Co. in Liechtenstein for escrow. On the asset and liability proof shared with Liechtenstein regulators reviewed by Forbes, it was Chen's DocuSign signature (signed with her nickname "Heina") rather than Wei Zhou's. (Wei Zhou did not respond to Forbes' request for comment).

"It's all about her," one insider added. "Whether it's about fund transfers or fund confirmation letters, she's the go-to person—because she is the authorized signatory on all bank accounts."

"She is the real CFO," the insider said.

Little is known about Chen's life before Binance. According to her LinkedIn, she holds a bachelor's degree in accounting from Shanghai University of Finance and Economics and an MBA from the National University of Singapore.

Although Chen has played a significant role at Binance since its founding in 2017, the company only acknowledged her existence last September in response to a reporter's inquiry. In a blog post titled "Who is Guangying Chen, Is Binance a 'Chinese Company'?" Zhao wrote that he met her in 2010, "when she was working at a friend's wine shop." According to a former Binance executive, Chen also provided drinks for a poker night he hosted in Shanghai. "He changed her life," the former executive added.

In the blog post, Zhao Changpeng stated that before hiring Chen to work at his new cryptocurrency company, Bijie Technology, she managed back-office functions at a "large commercial bank," which is a cloud services startup providing software to support cryptocurrency trading. There, she would "manage the back office because the early team was mostly engineers," Zhao wrote, adding that he appointed her, a Chinese citizen, as the company's representative for listing, "because of China's restrictive laws on foreigners" (Zhao is a Canadian citizen).

Corporate records from China reviewed by Forbes show that while Zhao is listed as the CEO of Shanghai Bijie Network Technology Co., Ltd., it is Chen who controls the company on paper. She holds 93% of the shares and is listed as the founder and sole legal representative.

Reportedly, due to rampant fraud, customers of the exchange were forced to shut down, and after Bijie closed, Zhao Changpeng launched Binance in Shanghai in 2017. Chinese corporate documents again show that the company was incorporated in Chen's name, with her holding 80% of the shares.

In 2020, a disgruntled Binance customer's friend criticized the company on the Chinese social networking app Weibo, claiming his friend lost 167 bitcoins on the platform, after which rumors began to circulate about Chen secretly controlling Binance. Several Chinese websites published his post and an email his friend received from Chen, in which she warned, "Your activities may be seen as malicious against us, and we may sue for damaging our reputation and manipulating the public for such attacks."

Chen appears to have held different titles at different times. On her LinkedIn, she states she is "responsible for the middle and back office, including finance/human resources/administration/settlement, etc.," and lists her title as "co-founder" of the company, but in Telegram messages seen by Forbes, former Binance CFO Wei Zhou referred to her as Zhao Changpeng's "personal financial manager." In a 2020 proof shared with Liechtenstein regulators, Chen listed her title as "back-end manager"; the SEC referred to Chen as Binance's "back-end manager" in its complaint. In an email introducing Chen to outsiders seen by Forbes, she was simply introduced as Binance's "Vice President." A former Binance executive who dealt with Chen over the phone told Forbes they believed she had no formal title, but her role was in the "finance department."

Zhao Changpeng himself has also tried to downplay her role: in a blog post last year, he stated that Chen was responsible for "management and settlement teams." However, despite Zhao's claims that she is primarily a legal representative while Binance remains in Shanghai, Chen's core role in Zhao's corporate entities extends far beyond China. According to Malta's business registry, after the Chinese government crackdown on cryptocurrency exchanges forced Binance to find a new home, Zhao established two companies in Malta in 2018 and appointed Chen as a director and sole legal representative of both companies the following year.

"When most of us left China in 2017, Guangying had to leave her family, her home, and her friends," Zhao wrote last year. "It was a huge sacrifice, and she is one of the few who truly understands the impact this has on all of us."

As for her current whereabouts, Zhao stated in a blog post in 2022 that Chen is a "passport holder of a European country, and she and her family are living there peacefully."

But documents currently under review by Forbes in Malta and Singapore's business registries seem to contradict this. According to the Malta registry, Chen updated the documents last June, registering a new Chinese passport. China does not allow dual nationality, and the documents show she resides in Singapore. This seems to contradict Zhao's statement about Chen "living peacefully" in a "European country." Her LinkedIn states she lives in the United Arab Emirates, where Zhao Changpeng moved in 2022 from Singapore.