Binance Hires Former GE, Edelman Exec as First Chief Communications Officer

Binance, the largest cryptocurrency exchange by daily trading volume, has hired former General Electric and Edelman executive Patrick Hillmann as its first chief communications officer, the company announced Thursday.

• Binance said Hillmann will be responsible for leading its global communications and public affairs division as the exchange continues to grow.
• Hillmann will oversee Binance’s corporate communications, public affairs and media relations. He will also work with Binance’s compliance and security leaders.
• Prior to joining Binance, Hillmann was the global head of innovation at Edelman’s crisis and risk practice, where he led the PR giant’s cybersecurity and counter disinformation offerings. Before his tenure at Edelman, Hillmann held senior government affairs and public affairs positions at General Electric and the National Association of Manufacturers.
• The new hire comes as regulators around the world have recently been scrutinizing Binance’s operations.
• “As we continue our evolution from a disruptive tech startup to a respected global financial institution, we recognized that it was paramount that we recruit leading compliance, communications and government affairs experts,” said Binance co-founder Yi He, in a statement.
• Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ) added: “We’re working hand-in-glove with regulators around the world toward our mutual goal of protecting users, encouraging innovation and further establishing the industry. Patrick’s fifteen years of experience working on global regulatory issues, such as GDPR [General Data Protection Regulation], will be critical in advancing that work.”

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