Alexandre Dreyfus, once a key figure in Binance’s Malta operations, appears unscathed by the crypto exchange’s legal challenges in the US. Dreyfus, who significantly contributed to Binance‘s establishment in Malta, is now living a lavish lifestyle filled with private jets and luxury in Malta despite the company facing a hefty $4.3 billion settlement with US authorities for anti-money laundering violations.
Dreyfus’s tenure at Binance coincided with Malta’s ambitious but unsuccessful ‘Blockchain Island’ project, endorsed by Prime Minister Joseph Muscat and Economy Minister Silvio Schembri. This period saw Binance operating in Malta under a transitory grace period without contributing taxes despite processing billions in transactions. The U.S. investigations against Binance pointed to Malta’s regulatory vacuum as a magnet for the exchange during its island tenure.
Following Binance founder Changpeng ‘CZ’ Zhao‘s guilty plea to money laundering charges and subsequent resignation, Dreyfus, who had already distanced himself from Binance‘s Malta entities by 2021, remains elusive regarding his departure reasons. Despite being closely associated with Binance and another crypto company, Tron, Dreyfus now focuses on his ventures, including Chiliz, which launched Socios.com—a platform allowing sports fans to engage with teams through ‘fan tokens.’
Dreyfus’s affluent lifestyle in Malta, complete with a ridgetop villa and frequent use of a Malta-registered business jet, starkly contrasts the repercussions faced by his former Binance colleagues. Despite inquiries, Dreyfus and his representatives have remained tight-lipped, particularly about the ownership of the business jet and the operations of his companies.
This story, unfolding amidst Binance‘s legal entanglements and Dreyfus’s continued prosperity, underscores the complex landscape of cryptocurrency operations and the personal fortunes amassed against a backdrop of regulatory scrutiny. Read the full article on The Shift for a detailed account of Alexandre Dreyfus’s saga and its implications for Malta’s cryptocurrency scene.
