SEC vs Binance

[cryptomaniac_xxx]

https://cointelegraph.com/news/binance-withdraws-crypto-license-germany
...

“Binance confirms that it has proactively withdrawn its BaFin application. The situation, both in the global market and regulation, has changed significantly. Binance still intends to apply for appropriate licensing in Germany, but it is essential that our submission accurately reflects these changes.“

What changes we are talking about? Was it about Binance legal opression only or is it wider in the sense of crypto-movement?

Perhaps it was due to the crypto movement, government or regulators might be broadening their rules as to how exchanges should work. Specially that EU is very tough regarding the whole KYC procedure.

Or maybe the way Binance and the rest of crypto exchanges handles the account and the customers money and if it really SAFU. This is just how I see, just my personal opinion as to why Binance has to withdraw and maybe do some reconstruction so that the next time they apply, chances are high for them to get approval.

[1714679088]

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[1714679088]

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[zasad@]

https://cointelegraph.com/news/binance-withdraws-crypto-license-germany
...

“Binance confirms that it has proactively withdrawn its BaFin application. The situation, both in the global market and regulation, has changed significantly. Binance still intends to apply for appropriate licensing in Germany, but it is essential that our submission accurately reflects these changes.“

What changes we are talking about? Was it about Binance legal opression only or is it wider in the sense of crypto-movement?

Perhaps it was due to the crypto movement, government or regulators might be broadening their rules as to how exchanges should work. Specially that EU is very tough regarding the whole KYC procedure.

Or maybe the way Binance and the rest of crypto exchanges handles the account and the customers money and if it really SAFU. This is just how I see, just my personal opinion as to why Binance has to withdraw and maybe do some reconstruction so that the next time they apply, chances are high for them to get approval.

I have only one explanation. While the Binance exchange is under attack in all countries, and in European countries, all countries are transitioning to the application of the MICA law, and in a year and a half, all countries of the European Union will have uniform legislation. Most likely, the exchange plans to wait out the hard times, working in other countries, and then try again to get a license to work throughout Europe according to the MICA law.

[user210822]

I have only one explanation. While the Binance exchange is under attack in all countries, and in European countries, all countries are transitioning to the application of the MICA law, and in a year and a half, all countries of the European Union will have uniform legislation. Most likely, the exchange plans to wait out the hard times, working in other countries, and then try again to get a license to work throughout Europe according to the MICA law.

And meanwhile Binance assets and user deposits there both will go down isn't it?

[pawel7777]

I have only one explanation. While the Binance exchange is under attack in all countries, and in European countries, all countries are transitioning to the application of the MICA law, and in a year and a half, all countries of the European Union will have uniform legislation. Most likely, the exchange plans to wait out the hard times, working in other countries, and then try again to get a license to work throughout Europe according to the MICA law.

"Waiting out the hard times" implies it's Binance's decision to withdraw from those markets, while everything looks like they are being pushed out. And if they are - I don't think MICA or any other regulations would help them to come back. If countries don't want Binance around (i.e. because it might be associated with the Chinese political agenda) they'll always find a way to keep them out.

[zasad@]

user210822,pawel7777 If it is very simple to explain, then try to understand what the Binance exchange has been doing in recent years in the US and European countries.
Binance created firms such as Binance US, but in reality the exchange was not very interested in where their customers came from and gave everyone the opportunity to trade on their main exchange with huge liquidity. The laws were observed formally and this is a big slap in the face of financial regulators. Binance obtains licenses in other countries, and all of its clients will work there, but through other jurisdictions.

[virasog]

user210822,pawel7777 If it is very simple to explain, then try to understand what the Binance exchange has been doing in recent years in the US and European countries.
Binance created firms such as Binance US, but in reality the exchange was not very interested in where their customers came from and gave everyone the opportunity to trade on their main exchange with huge liquidity. The laws were observed formally and this is a big slap in the face of financial regulators. Binance obtains licenses in other countries, and all of its clients will work there, but through other jurisdictions.

Binance is facing many issues with the regulators not just in the USA but globally. Recently if you heard that Binance limits withdrawals in Europe, cites payment processor issues, due to their issues with Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA).

This is not good for binance at all as people will lose their trust in this exchange. Also, i think the SEC want to bring this exchange down and slowly and steadily they are moving towards their goal.

Many people are saying that bitcoin has not seen its all-time low for this bear market and perhaps the Binance collapse may take bitcoin below 15K. Even if it does not happen, then for sure after the bull market in 2024/2025, there may be anytime where the binance collapse could trigger the next bear market. Who knows what's coming up 

[pawel7777]

Binance is facing many issues with the regulators not just in the USA but globally. Recently if you heard that Binance limits withdrawals in Europe, cites payment processor issues, due to their issues with Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA).

This is not good for binance at all as people will lose their trust in this exchange. Also, i think the SEC want to bring this exchange down and slowly and steadily they are moving towards their goal.

It really does look like a coordinated effect of "the West" to cripple Binance and not let them dominate the crypto industry globally. All the troubles dropping on them almost at the same time cannot be a coincidence.
And they're not getting any break, further bad news came from Mastercard, who ended up their partnership with Binance in the Latin America:
https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/mastercard-binance-end-crypto-card-partnership-2023-08-24/

[zasad@]

Binance is facing many issues with the regulators not just in the USA but globally. Recently if you heard that Binance limits withdrawals in Europe, cites payment processor issues, due to their issues with Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA).

This is not good for binance at all as people will lose their trust in this exchange. Also, i think the SEC want to bring this exchange down and slowly and steadily they are moving towards their goal.

It really does look like a coordinated effect of "the West" to cripple Binance and not let them dominate the crypto industry globally. All the troubles dropping on them almost at the same time cannot be a coincidence.
And they're not getting any break, further bad news came from Mastercard, who ended up their partnership with Binance in the Latin America:
https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/mastercard-binance-end-crypto-card-partnership-2023-08-24/

In Russia, Binance also has problems, and they removed the most popular Russian cards from the P2P exchange because these banks are under sanctions.
The positive aspect of all these events and the redistribution of influence in the market is that cryptocurrency will live, although subject to very serious regulations in many countries. Cryptocurrency is not banned and has become a small part of the financial world, but regulators want to tighten their control.

[FP91G]

The Securities and Exchange Commission late Monday filed a sealed motion in its case against Binance that includes more than 35 exhibits.
A new secret court filing related to Binance, the crypto exchange that already faces U.S. accusations of wrongdoing, has some wondering whether more bad news is about to hit the industry giant.
https://www.coindesk.com/policy/2023/08/29/secs-secret-binance-court-filing-has-observers-bracing-for-bad-news/

[pawel7777]

Someone on twitter X posted a nice summary and a timeline of all major Binance troubles since December last year.
https://twitter.com/Travis_Kling/status/1699135859885236432



Considering all the above, Binance seems to be still holding pretty strong. The price of BNB got some beating, but it's still safe as a No.3 crypto (excl. USDT).

[zasad@]

https://www.coindesk.com/policy/2023/09/18/i-just-want-to-keep-things-moving-judge-makes-no-ruling-in-sec-binance-document-dispute/
"A U.S. judge declined to order Binance.US to make its executives more available for depositions, or for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to back down in its demands for more documents during a hearing Monday.
Rather, Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui urged the two parties to work on the various discovery requests together, asking the SEC to narrow its request for information but allowing it to depose certain shard holders to establish whether Binance.US’s funds are safe. The crypto exchange, a branch of the global Binance entity, should share more information about its relationship with Ceffu, its service provider, he said.
“I’m not going to order from the bench right now that they produce or not produce things. Let’s continue to try to work this out,” he said. “I just want to keep things moving.”"

[bbc.reporter]

Someone on twitter X posted a nice summary and a timeline of all major Binance troubles since December last year.
https://twitter.com/Travis_Kling/status/1699135859885236432



Considering all the above, Binance seems to be still holding pretty strong. The price of BNB got some beating, but it's still safe as a No.3 crypto (excl. USDT).

Agreed, CZ's fingers 4 fud appear to be working by making the community calm and not make panic withdrawals from Binance hehehe. Also, all cryptocoins had their own dumps that have occured to them, it is not only BNB.

I shake my head on these people who cheer when Binance is banned from a certain jurisdiction. If a government can ban Binance, it would also be very easy to ban any exchange from their jurisdictions. Would this not bring back and delay the cryptospace for another 10 years? Who would make markets if all centralized exchanges are banned? This will be worse for Bitcoin than Ethereum because Ethereum is widely used as gas and currency for trading in DeFi.

[pawel7777]

I shake my head on these people who cheer when Binance is banned from a certain jurisdiction. If a government can ban Binance, it would also be very easy to ban any exchange from their jurisdictions. Would this not bring back and delay the cryptospace for another 10 years? Who would make markets if all centralized exchanges are banned? This will be worse for Bitcoin than Ethereum because Ethereum is widely used as gas and currency for trading in DeFi.

I haven't seen many people cheering for governments' actions against Binance. Overall, their reputation in the crypto industry was probably the best out of all centralised exchanges. Of course, there are always some orthodox bitcoiners rooting against anything centralised or crypto-related.
And I've said it before and will say it again - I think all the actions are specifically targeted at Binance, not in entire crypto-industry. There's simply no way the US (or the so-called West) would allow a Chinese company to absolutely dominate the industry, not without a fight.

[bbc.reporter]

@pawel7777. There is a few of them in social media, however, they always appear to hate CZ, KYC and centralized exchanges as a whole. I am not arguing that CZ is not a clown and a hustler but it is head scratching to witness them to want uncle Gary to be victorious in putting CZ in prison. This is also funny because this will not be good for the cryptospace. This will set another precedent that if target no.1 is finished, who will be target no.2 and 3? This might only be the beginning if CZ does not fight the lawsuits filed against him and Binance.

[Zoomic]

I shake my head on these people who cheer when Binance is banned from a certain jurisdiction. If a government can ban Binance, it would also be very easy to ban any exchange from their jurisdictions. Would this not bring back and delay the cryptospace for another 10 years? Who would make markets if all centralized exchanges are banned? This will be worse for Bitcoin than Ethereum because Ethereum is widely used as gas and currency for trading in DeFi.

I haven't seen many people cheering for governments' actions against Binance. Overall, their reputation in the crypto industry was probably the best out of all centralised exchanges. Of course, there are always some orthodox bitcoiners rooting against anything centralised or crypto-related.
And I've said it before and will say it again - I think all the actions are specifically targeted at Binance, not in entire crypto-industry. There's simply no way the US (or the so-called West) would allow a Chinese company to absolutely dominate the industry, not without a fight.

Many people are feeling indifferent and probably unconcerned about this Binance and SEC battle. If such a legal batle happens between the government and any arm of the crypto industry, the crypto enthusiasts will always rally round their own and support them. But why the case of CZ and Binance is different is because many people are not inlove with the activities of Binance and his smart move of dominace in the crypto industry. A vast majority do not like anything about  CEX generally, as such they felt the battle is against CZ and not the crypto at large.
But I tell you, if Binace bleeds, the market will surely be bloody as well, believe me on this. And if it eventually happens any moment, bull run may not accompany this circle's halving.

[zasad@]

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/companies/the-worlds-biggest-crypto-firm-is-melting-down/ar-AA1hhv3b
"Binance now handles about half of all trades where cryptocurrencies are directly bought and sold, down from about 70% at the start of the year, according to data provider Kaiko.

What happens to Binance will have immense implications for the crypto industry because the exchange is so big. Industry players and watchers say other exchanges would fill the void if Binance were to collapse. But in the short term, liquidity in the market could evaporate, driving the price of tokens sharply down."

but do not forget that the US Department of Justice is still investigating the Binance exchange and the main charges and fines have not yet been brought.

[Zoomic]

What happens to Binance will have immense implications for the crypto industry because the exchange is so big. Industry players and watchers say other exchanges would fill the void if Binance were to collapse. But in the short term, liquidity in the market could evaporate, driving the price of tokens sharply down."

I have already known this and that is why I advocate that people should stop spreading FUD against Binance. I understand that many people do not like CZ and his binance but we should manage the situation because if anything happens Binance, it will affect the larger crypto industry.
As bitcoin is to cryptocurrency, that is how Binance is to CEXs. Many are afraid of Binance dominance of the market and yet it is happening right in our presence.

[zasad@]

https://www.scmp.com/tech/tech-trends/article/3242298/us-justice-department-seeking-more-us4-billion-binance-end-criminal-case
"US Justice Department is seeking more than US$4 billion from Binance to end criminal case
Negotiations between the Justice Department and Binance include the possibility that its founder Changpeng Zhao would face criminal charges in the US
The agreement seeks to strike a balance that would allow Binance to continue operating, rather than risk a collapse that could cause negative fallout for markets

However, Binance would likely be expected to pay more than US$4 billion, which would be one of the largest-ever penalties in a criminal cryptocurrency case."
____
The US government wants to return the money that Binance took from American hamsters

[CRAIC]

Just in case, I will withdraw all funds from there. I feel restless somehow reading the latest news

[zasad@]

Recent events are just crazy!
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/news/binance-founder-changpeng-zhao-steps-down-pleads-guilty/ar-AA1kiU5B
"The chief executive of Binance, the largest global cryptocurrency exchange, stepped down and pleaded guilty to violating criminal U.S. anti-money-laundering requirements, in a deal that might preserve the company’s ability to continue operating, according to court documents.

Changpeng Zhao appeared in Seattle federal court Tuesday and entered his plea, according to court records. Prosecutors accused Binance, which Zhao owns, of facilitating transactions with sanctioned groups. Binance encouraged U.S. users to obscure their location so the firm could avoid complying with U.S. anti-money-laundering laws, prosecutors said.

Binance pleaded guilty and agreed to pay fines totaling $4.3 billion, which includes amounts to settle civil allegations made by regulators."

Historical tweet CZ
https://twitter.com/cz_binance/status/1727063503125766367


___
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/binance-to-make-complete-exit-from-us-pay-billions-to-fincen-ofac-on-top-of-doj-settlement/ar-AA1kjszk
Crypto exchange Binance will leave the U.S., pay billions in fines and appoint a monitor for five years to settle charges with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) and Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC), the U.S. Treasury Department's money laundering and sanctions watchdogs, according to press releases shared Tuesday.

https://twitter.com/JohnReedStark/status/1727087727751864436
"Looking Ahead

This plea agreement strikes me as robust, onerous and is certainly unprecedented in the cryptoverse.

The question is not just whether Binance can survive the litany of extraordinary conditions of the monitoring provisions -- there's a lot more to ponder.  

For example, I am wondering whether any person will want to do business with Binance when the U.S. Department of Justice and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network of the U.S. Treasury Department may have unfettered access, 24-7, 365 days a year, to Binance customer information. That sort of exposure seems anathema to the crypto ethos of libertarian financial transactions.

Only time will tell. More info and pleadings to follow friends."



https://twitter.com/JohnReedStark/status/1727323605665546497
"Why The Binance DOJ/FinCEN/CFTC Actions Are a Huge SEC Victory (Even Though the SEC Was AWOL From the Plea Party)"

4 Billion