Binance hits out, accuses WazirX and Nischal Shetty of misleading customers

In the blog post released, Binance urged the WazirX team under Zanmai/Zettai to be accountable to WazirX users and compensate them for the funds that have been lost under Zanmai/Zettai management.

Binance has finally issued a statement related to WazirX’s $230-million hack. The global exchange alleged that the WazirX team and founder Nischal Shetty have been ‘misleading’ the customers and the market regarding their relationship.

To be sure, Shetty and his legal advisory team had said during a recent townhall following the $230-million crypto assets theft in one of its multisig wallets on July 18 that Binance held majority of the revenues, cash flows or profits of WazirX parent Zettai, restricting the former’s ability to repay affected customers from its own books.

In 2019, Binance had announced that it had acquired WazirX. But its CEO Changpeng Zhao later in August 2022 took to X (then Twitter) to say that his firm didn’t own any equity in WazirX nor did it control its operations.

“The WazirX team and Nischal Shetty continue to mislead WazirX customers and the market regarding the relationship between WazirX and Binance. Binance has not owned, controlled, or operated WazirX at any time, including before, during, or after the July 2024 attack,” Binance said in a statement through its blog post.

In the blog post released, Binance urged the WazirX team under Zanmai/Zettai to be accountable to WazirX users and compensate them for the funds that have been lost under Zanmai/Zettai management. It added that WazirX’s responsibility to its own users is unrelated to their dispute with Binance.

“Their attempts to shift responsibility is a disappointing deflection tactic, but it should not distract anyone from the glaring issue to be addressed here: the need for the WazirX team to be held accountable for user funds lost under their management,” the blog post added.

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