Reuters: Binance transfers more than $400 million from Binance.US' Silvergate Bank account to trading firm Merit Peak in first three months of 2021

Binance moved more than $400 million from Binance US’s Silvergate Bank account to Merit Peak Ltd, a trading firm managed by Changpeng Zhao, in the first three months of 2021, Reuters reported, citing bank records and company sources. US accounts are registered in the name of BAM Trading, the US exchange operator. Transfers to Merit Peak began in late 2020, company sources show. Reuters said it could not determine the reason for the transfer or whether the funds belonged to Binance.US customers. Binance’s public terms of use at the time said its customers’ U.S. dollar deposits were held with Silvergate and a Nevada-based custodian called Prime Trust LLC. Prime Trust deposited $650 million via wire transfer to Binance. Binance.US spokeswoman Kimberly Soward said the Reuters report used outdated information, without elaborating further. Merit Peak neither trades nor provides any type of service on the Binance.US platform, and only Binance.US employees have access to the US company's bank accounts. Soward did not specify when Merit Peak's activities ceased.