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Binance’s Latest Showdown With Nigerian “Scammer Entity”

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Changepeng Zhao, CEO of Binance, declared that it had filed a cease and desist order to “Binance Nigeria Limited” and referred to it as a “scammer entity.”

This comes after the alleged fraudulent local unit was ordered by Nigeria’s market authority to halt operations accusing it of wooing investors through an unauthorized and illegal website.

Later this month, the US financial watchdog SEC filed lawsuits against Binance and Zhao on 13 counts. Some of these accusations were that the firm did not register as a broker-dealer or an exchange, its funds were unlawfully mixed, and that it lacked essential internal controls over its operations.

Since then, the trading firm has kind of turned into a FUD magnet. The most recent of these was apparently French officials looking into the firm for potential money laundering, according to the regional newspaper Le Monde.

CZ promptly put a stop to the rumors and suggested that a few weeks ago unforeseen onsite visits might have fanned the rumors.

In the days that followed, the crypto exchange reaffirmed that all French financial institutions are subject to regulatory requirements that include on-site inspections by regulators and inspectors. Binance stressed that during the latest review, it fully cooperated.

Again when the native token BNB was trapped in regulatory headwinds with a price risking $220 liquidation, CZ also had to reassure investors.

Speculators were rife that CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao and his trading firm were dumping Bitcoin [BTC] to artificially stabilize BNB.

Binance Reach An Agreement On US Customer’s Assets

CZ tweeted in response that Binance had not sold either BTC or BNB and that the crypto exchange still owned “a bag” of FTX Token FTT, the native token of the collapsed trading firm FTX, urging users not to fall for the FUD.

In a huge relief for Binance’s users, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission reached an agreement over the weekend to not freeze the exchange’s funds.

Citing an order from the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, the SEC emphasized that Binance.US users are permitted to withdraw their assets from the trading platform.

The assets will also be safeguarded and continue to be in the United States, the Commission assured in a press release.

Binance CEO Firmly Denies Coindesk’s Misinformation, Asserts User Funds, And Platform Security

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Changpeng Zhao, the CEO of Binance, has strongly refuted claims that the cryptocurrency exchange redirected approximately $12 billion of user funds to companies under his control. These assertions arose following reports suggesting that CZ had transferred customer funds to a firm called Merit Peak. The situation intensified when US Senators Elizabeth Warren and Chris Van Hollen called upon the US Justice Department to investigate Binance following a complaint from the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Binance CEO Provides Clarity On User Funds

Expressing his uncertainty about the accuracy of the claims, CZ took to Twitter, suggesting that the misinformation may have originated either from the journalist or the source of the information. This response underlined the CEO’s commitment to transparency and accountability.

CoinDesk published an article on June 8, revealing allegations made by the SEC against CZ and Guangying ‘Helena’ Chen, accusing them of receiving billions of dollars in customer funds through their holding company; the SEC asserted that the funds were transferred to companies controlled by Zhao using an intermediary holding company named Key Vision Development Limited.

Supporting these allegations, the SEC presented testimony from Sachin Verma, an accountant employed by the regulatory body, which will serve as evidence in their request for a temporary restraining order to freeze assets on Binance.US.

According to the lawsuit filed by the SEC, Binance is accused of participating in the sale and offering of securities without proper registration. Additionally, the company allegedly has mixed investor funds with its own funds. Interestingly, this lawsuit came on the heels of a similar case involving Coinbase and the SEC.

Binance.US has reported that the total amount of user funds on the platform is currently estimated to be around $2 billion in USD equivalent, subject to fluctuations due to changes in cryptocurrency prices. However, the company has acknowledged a decline in user funds as some individuals have opted to withdraw their assets due to the recent news.

The legal battle is set to unfold in court, with a hearing scheduled for June 13 to address the SEC’s request for a restraining order. The outcome of this hearing will play a crucial role in determining the next course of action and whether the court will grant the SEC’s plea to freeze assets associated with Binance. The hearing’s verdict will illuminate the veracity of the SEC’s allegations and the potential impact on Binance’s operations.

Amidst the ongoing case, CZ remains active on his Twitter account, engaging with users, responding to comments, and sharing updates regarding the platform. This proactive approach aims to maintain open lines of communication with Binance’s user base.

Related reading: |Record Liquidations Spur Bitcoin and Dogecoin to Drive Crypto Market Rebound

After Regulatory Woes, Binance Ponders A Change In Leadership

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Binance might soon have a new CEO to address the overwhelming difficulties recently faced by the largest crypto exchange in the world.

According to those with knowledge of the situation, Richard Teng has emerged as the front-runner to succeed Zhao as CEO.

Teng, who has more than 11 years of work experience, formerly held the positions of chief exec of the Abu Dhabi Global Market, chief regulatory officer of the Singapore Exchange Ltd., and director of corporate finance of the Monetary Authority of Singapore.

Teng assumed the position of CEO of Singapore for Binance in August 2021, and he quickly progressed through the ranks.

With his most recent elevation, he took on even more authority, extending his leadership beyond Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa.

The succession issues became even more urgent as Binance dealt with regulatory issues in the US after the CFTC sued it for regulatory violations.

At the same time, the US Department of Justice has also been investigating the firm on money laundering laws and potential tax offenses, and it’s mulling potential charges.

Beyond the US, the CZ-led trading platform was forced to withdraw from Canada citing issues related to the nation’s regulations on stablecoins and investor limits.

Canada introduced harsher rules for trading digital assets earlier this year, which caused a number of significant crypto exchanges to leave the sector. Along with Binance, other trading firms like OKX, Paxos, Blockchain.com, and Deribit also made their exits known.

Again in mid-May, Binance’s Australian payments partner abruptly closed down, preventing local users from making bank transfers to deposit Australian dollars on the platform.

The move severely affected business as around two weeks later, it stopped all Australian trading pairs and bank withdrawals of the local currency.

Binance Leadership Overhaul Hints Willingness To Work With Regulators

Although Binance still has more trading volume than the combined volume of all other top centralized crypto exchanges, its position has never appeared shakier.

Based on Teng’s prior high-profile stints, his arrival into the picture makes him the ideal choice to help lead Binance through the regulatory maelstrom bearing down on it.

In the words of Campbell Harvey, a finance professor at Duke University, Teng’s appointment “checks the boxes for trust. Binance is signaling that they want to work with the regulators.” 

China’s National Television Broadcasts Crypto: Potential Bullish Trigger For Market Recovery?

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China Central Television (CCTV), the national television broadcaster of the Asian giant, made headlines by featuring crypto in its recent broadcast. The announcement, revealed by Changpeng ‘CZ’ Zhao, CEO of Binance, has sparked excitement within the industry, considering the historical significance of such broadcasts in triggering bull runs.

CZ emphasized the potential impact of this bullish event on the cryptocurrency ecosystem’s current state while clarifying that past performance does not guarantee future outcomes. The ecosystem may undergo positive changes if the event takes place. Its potential benefits are catalyzing market recovery and breathing new life into a market that has recently experienced volatility.

China has a complex relationship with digital currencies, with a rich history of involvement in their evolution. Over the past decade, the country has oscillated between support and skepticism, culminating in a ban on all crypto transactions in 2021.

This ban sent shockwaves throughout the crypto ecosystem, with the People’s Bank of China (PBoC) forbidding financial institutions from engaging in any digital currency-related activities. Additionally, it prompted the departure of Bitcoin miners from the country, leading to a significant drop in the global BTC mining hashrate.

Crypto World Awaits China’s Broadcast Impact

Since news of the broadcast spread, commentators have offered intriguing speculations about its implications. Many believe that it signals China’s renewed interest in embracing the technology under a regulated environment, suggesting the possibility of final regulations for the industry.

Given China’s enormous market potential and influence on the ecosystem, a revival of its interest in cryptocurrencies could have far-reaching consequences for all stakeholders involved. The broadcast by CCTV may be seen as an important milestone in this evolving relationship, potentially paving the way for a more controlled and regulated approach to digital currencies in China.

China’s national television broadcaster, China Central Television (CCTV), has focused on crypto and got people talking. The broadcast triggered interest and discussion. Changpeng ‘CZ’ Zhao thrilled the industry, given the historical relevance of such broadcasts in initiating bullish movements.

CZ highlighted how this festive event could potentially impact the current state of the crypto ecosystem. He confirmed that future results cannot be assured. If the event occurs, the ecosystem might experience positive changes.

Meanwhile, once a prominent crypto hub, Hong Kong is trying to regain its status and ease regulations for retail investors to trade like Bitcoin and Ethereum (ETH). This move is viewed as a subtle experiment for mainland China to gauge whether it can effectively regulate crypto service providers.

Hong Kong’s recent actions to reposition itself as a crypto-friendly jurisdiction are closely watched as a potential model for mainland China. Hong Kong aims to attract retail investors and stimulate trading by relaxing regulations. The success of this experiment could provide valuable insights for China in managing the affairs of crypto service providers through thoughtful and effective regulations

Related Reading: | Bitcoin Sell-Side Risk Ratio Approaching All-Time Lows, Signaling Potential Volatility

Binance CEO Responds To CNBC Host’s “Sketchy” Remark

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The CEO of Binance, Changpeng Zhao, a.k.a., CZ, once again responded to CNBC’s “Mad Money” host Jim Cramer for his remarks that the trading platform was “too sketchy.”

The top executive eloquently reacted with an emoji of folded hands. He also used the opportunity to cite data showing that BinanceUS’ weekly trading volume last week outpaced Coinbase’s [global] trading volume by 41%.

For context, Cramer made his remarks in response to an interview in which Timothy Massad, a former chairman of the CFTC, called the regulator’s legal action against Binance “a big deal” a few days prior.

“If you read the complaint, there is so much detail to it. It suggests that [CFTC] did have some information from people inside,” said Massad, now a research fellow at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government. He also called the level of detail “really quite striking.”

Meanwhile, Cramer who is known for his anti-crypto stance has frequently found himself at odds with the CEO of Binance.

Post FTX, the CNBC host warned that the largest crypto exchange, lacked legitimacy, a charge denied by Zhao, stating that the exchange is safe.

The feud resurfaced when the outspoken critic urged his supporters to give up crypto assets on January 9 when bitcoin was languishing between $16 and 17k.

Binance CEO- “Ignore FUD”

Later when BTC surpassed $21k for the first time since Nov 2022, the Binance CEO tweeted that one of his New Year’s resolutions was to ignore FUD in an indirect reference.

After the CFTC lawsuit, Cramer continued to throw barbs at the trading platform calling it an example of “a company went rogue.” in a tweet on March 29.

Binance and its CEO, hogged the limelight after it was accused of regulatory violations filed by the CFTC in a federal court in Chicago.

According to the CFTC, Zhao, and Binance violated trading and derivatives regulations by soliciting and accepting orders from US clients for spot and derivative transactions since July 2019 while not being CFTC-registered.

In a blog post response, Zhao said the complaint “appears to contain an incomplete recitation of fact,” adding that the exchange does not concur ”with the characterization of many of the issues alleged in the complaint.”

The lawsuit has raised more concerns about the regulatory framework for cryptocurrency exchanges, notably in the US, where rules have been getting stricter.

Binance Planned To Circumvent US Regulators- WSJ Report

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In a report by Wall Street Journal, the world’s largest crypto exchange Binance has allegedly devised plans to circumvent US regulations. One of them even included hiring SEC chair Gary Gensler as an adviser before he became chairman of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.

The explosive revelation was taken from messages, interviews, and documents from the platform’s former execs’ during 2018 and 2020, WSJ claimed. 

Gensler, while he was teaching at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, was approached by Ella Zhang, then head of Binance’s venture investing arm, and Harry Zhou, co-founder of firm Koi Trading, the Journal reported.

After Gensler turned down the advisor position, Zhou, according to a former employee, wrote in the chat that the former would be “likely back in a regulators seat if Dems win the 2020 election.”

The second meeting between Gensler and Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, the CEO of Binance, took place in Tokyo in March 2019. Gensler was appointed chair of the SEC in April 2021.

The report also revealed Binance’s strategy for avoiding regulatory scrutiny in the United States, which involved creating a minimally functional American platform called Binance.US that would license the firm’s intellectual property and brand but otherwise present as completely separate from it.

Binance And Its US Platform Has More Deeper Connections- WSJ

“But the entities have been much more intertwined than the companies have disclosed, mixing staff and finances and sharing an affiliated entity that bought and sold cryptocurrencies,” WSJ stated.

These alleged links if proven would put the trading platform and its billionaire founder and chief executive, Changpeng Zhao, as well as his undisclosed finances under closer scrutiny.

A Texas financial regulator recently said in a court filing that Binance.US was denied a license to operate in the state because its major shareholder, Mr. Zhao, refused to give financial details.

Both Binance and its CEO Changpeng Zhao had not replied to the accusations as of the time this story was being written.

The developments come at a time when various senators have called out Binance.US for engaging in “potentially illegal” activity and asked the firm to answer several questions.

Previously reported by TronWeekly, U.S Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D., Mass.), Chris Van Hollen (D., Md.), and Roger Marshall (R., Kan.) sent a letter to C.Z and his top U.S. deputy, Brian Shroder, requesting various documents from the exchange, including balance sheets from 2017 to the present.

Binance Teams Up With Ingenico To Boost Crypto Adoption In France

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Prominent crypto exchange Binance and payment processor Ingenico have forged an alliance to provide digital asset payment solutions in France.

Through this partnership, customers will be able to utilize Binance Pay to make cryptocurrency payments at two locations that employ Ingenico’s payment terminal: La Carlie, a pub, and Miss Opéra, a retail store.

In accordance with the press release, users will be able to pay using over 50 cryptocurrencies through Ingenico’s AXIUM terminals.

After the pilot testing, Ingenico plans to bring its new crypto payments solution to other European nations where Binance is regulated.

Speaking more on the collaboration, the director of Binance Pay and Card, Jonathan Lim, stated,

One of the major benefits of this partnership is that it offers companies a new approach to the market. Their dominant position in the market and their innovative payment solutions allow us to accelerate our access to consumers, without having to create our own terminals or software.

“As a leading payments ecosystem accelerator, we are excited to partner with up-and-coming brands like Binance to bring cryptocurrency payments to retail for consumers around the world,” he added.

Additionally, both entities are currently working on building a crypto-to-fiat payment solution to enable payments to merchants in fiat currency. This solution will be tested in the second quarter of 2023.

Ingenico is the world’s leading company in point-of-sale terminals, with more than 40 million payment terminals deployed across 37 countries.

The latest partnerships show how resilient a crypto industry is in the face of regulatory challenges in the US and a worldwide economic downturn.

Binance, in particular, has seen a number of relationships around the globe.

Binance Push For Greater Alliances Amidst Regulatory Pushback

Recently the crypto behemoth launched a prepaid digital asset card in Brazil in collaboration with payment giant Mastercard, the trading platform announced on 20 Feb.

According to the blog post, the card will be available to all Binance users in Brazil with a valid national ID and allow them to make payments and pay bills with 13 cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin, ether, and BUSD.

Binance’s card will charge a 0.9% fee per transaction involving crypto, the firm said, adding that it will offer up to 8% in cashback with crypto and allow ATM withdrawals without any fees.

Binance Mints TUSD While Price Of $TRU Rises By 200%

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Binance, the famous cryptocurrency exchange, has created roughly $50 million worth of TrueUSD just days after rumours surfaced that Paxos and Binance USD (BUSD) were under regulatory review by US authorities (TUSD).

Data from Etherscan indicates that the transaction occurred on February 16. It also occurs two days after Binance CEO Chanpeng “CZ” Zhao stated in a Twitter Space on February 14 that Binance would seek to “diversify” its stablecoin holdings away from BUSD.

CZ had previously stated that the recent regulatory action by the United States Securities Exchange Commission and the New York Department of Financial Services over the long term may lead to a fall in the dominance of U.S. dollar-backed stablecoins despite making nearly $50 million in TUSD from the TrustToken platform’s smart contract.

CZ said,

“I think with the current stances taken by the regulators on the U.S. dollar-based stablecoin, the industry will probably move away to a non-U.S. dollar-based stablecoin, back to algorithmic stablecoins.”

He further added,

“There’s multiple agencies putting applied pressure there. It is just going to shrink the U.S. dollar-based stablecoin market.”

CZ stated that they are now investigating alternative choices after being motivated to search for other options in various locations.

While the CEO noted that Binance would extend greater support for USD Coin (USDC) and Tether (USDT) in the near future in the hope that BUSD “winds down over time,” he also mentioned that they are now working to investigate new stablecoins based on the euro and the Japanese yen.

CZ stated that the existing circulating quantity of BUSD is there and safe, and when more individuals want to redeem, they will be burned in regards to BUSD.

Interestingly, the CEO of Binance also said that he was never overly optimistic about the BUSD stablecoin’s success.

He stated,

“To be honest BUSD was never a big business for us, when we started I actually thought the BUSD project may fail, so we actually don’t have very good economics on that collaboration.”

Binance Auto-Converts TUSD to BUSD

TUSD was an interesting stablecoin that Binance auto-converted to BUSD in September to improve liquidity and capital efficiency for its users. Additionally, USDC and USDP Stablecoins were automatically converted to stablecoins (USDP). In a few weeks, this increased BUSD’s market share in stablecoins from 10% to 15%.

TUSD was introduced by TrustToken on March 5, 2018. It is present on the Tron, Polygon, Avalanche, and Ethereum networks.

Every time a buyer wires USD to a third-party escrow account holding USD deposits on behalf of Prime Trust, new TUSD are created. The trader’s designated ERC-20 or BEP-2 wallet address will receive TUSD, which will then be transferred there in a 1:1 ratio to any USD that was sent there.

Binance And WazirX: The Clash Of Crypto Exchanges

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According to a blog post on Friday, Binance has requested Zanmai Labs, the company running the Indian cryptocurrency exchange WazirX, to negotiate terms for withdrawing any remaining funds stored in Binance wallets.
The answer purports to allay concerns about what would happen to customer funds if Binance and WazirX decided to cancel their partnership.

Binance stated,

“As an exception, we have invited Zanmai to work out arrangements with us to withdraw any remaining assets in the relevant accounts after 3 February. However, the responsibility ultimately lies with the Zanmai team to make the withdrawals expeditiously.”

However, it has been reported that WazirX has not responded yet.

Did Binance Lie About Ownership Disputes At WazirX?

The ownership of WazirX was undisputed in November 2019 after Binance, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the world by trading volume, announced that it had acquired the Indian exchange in a blog post. Executives from WazirX openly discussed the acquisition. The narrative began to shift, though, when WazirX got into trouble with the Indian authorities last summer. Indian authorities searched WazirX’s Mumbai office in the first few days of August on the theory that the exchange had assisted 16 fintech companies in money laundering.

Binance moved right away to officially disassociate itself from WazirX. The original announcement of the acquisition on the former’s blog was changed to reflect that the deal was “limited to an agreement to purchase specific assets and intellectual property.” Changpeng Zhao (CZ), CEO of Binance, stated in a tweet on August 5 that the company “does not own any equity in Zanmai Labs, the entity operating WazirX.” A representative for CZ’s firm told the local media that the claims that the CZ-led-firm owned WazirX were “lies.”

The ownership of the Indian exchange was the subject of months of public back and forth between WazirX and Binance, during which the latter maintained that the transaction never actually happened. Officials from WazirX said that it did and that they had proof, however, they never released it.

In the early morning hours of January 26, an Indian national holiday, Binance delivered WazirX a letter stating that the Indian exchange must comply with two conditions by the end of the month or face having its service agreement with WazirX terminated by CZ’s exchange by February 3.

First, CZ’s exchange instructed WazirX to repudiate previous claims that CZ’s exchange controlled WazirX by publishing a pre-written “clarificatory statement” that was provided by CZ’s firm. WazirX was also compelled to remove all references to CZ’s firm from its terms of service.

Binance Warns Of Massive XRP Transactions Amidst Scrutiny

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A large transaction consisting of XRP tokens is on the way, crypto exchange Binance warned via Twitter. Looks like the seventh-ranked token is poised for an early Christmas. Besides XRP, Chainlink’s token, LINK would also be moved.

In the thread, the trading platform announced that as part of its housekeeping for Binance-pegged tokens, it will be moving the mentioned assets, which are collateral for Btokens, into dedicated wallets.

This wasn’t the first time for the world’s dominant digital asset exchange.

A few days ago, data from Whale Alert spread the word about a staggering 300,000,000 XRP being transferred from a Binance wallet. The value of this Ripple-backed token cryptocurrency in fiat amounts is roughly $11 million.

Prior to that, the exchange sent over 37 million XRP to a wallet that the aforementioned tracker flagged as “unknown.”

Just two crypto transfers from Binance were made in the last 24 hours. 1.2 billion BUSD were also seen to have left this exchange in the previous 10 hours by Whale Alert. In total, close to $2 billion worth of cryptocurrency has been taken out of Binance.

This huge exodus started in the backdrop of the US prosecutor’s office indicating that it is considering filing charges against Binance, the largest exchange by trading volume since it believes the trading platform is laundering money and breaking sanctions.

As reported by TronWeekly, Binance’s latest proof of reserve has been the cause of concern for investors. A report by Nansen revealed that crypto market maker Jump Trading became the largest withdrawer from Binance.

Binance Is XRP’s Largest Liquidity Holder

CEO Changpeng Zhao or CZ slammed the news as FUD [fear, uncertainty, and doubt] and urged everyone not to worry.

Following the reports, Binance tweeted that it was temporarily suspending USDC withdrawals as it engages in a token swap between USDC and BUSD [which is managed by Paxos].

CZ clarified that until the bank launches operations in the United States, it will not be possible to update the account ledgers necessary for this swap at a New York-based bank.

That said, per data provider Nomics, Binance is the biggest holder of XRP liquidity with a daily trade volume of more than $100 million and 150 million XRP in its reserves.