By Shelly Melancon (Switzerland)
Cryptocurrency Exchange Binance is still reeling from the effects of regulatory pressures it has faced within the past few weeks, and yet gets hit by another bombshell. These are definitely worrisome times for the exchange as a key payment partner, Clear Junction, withdraws its services from Binance, citing regulations from UK authorities as a major reason for the severance. Following these events, users of the exchange are already finding solace in other crypto exchanges for fear of losing their funds.
Clear Junction, global payments service provider released a notice informing the public of the development on Monday. Details of the notice revealed that the payment facilitator will suspend both deposits and withdrawals of Pound and Euro to and from the exchange. Clear Junction highlighted the recent pressure Binance has been facing from UK regulatory authorities as a precursor to its latest decision. The UK Financial Conduct Authority announced two weeks ago that Binance operations are no longer effective in the country.
Binance Temporarily Suspends SEPA Services, UK Crypto Traders Affected
A week earlier, the leading crypto exchange issued a notice to its UK users stating that the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) network from which users in the UK could make deposits was temporarily suspended. Although Binance didn’t give a definite reason for the suspension; it only stated that ‘reasons beyond its control’ necessitated the suspension. It is not difficult to deduce that Binance’s decision was informed by the crackdown by the UK FCA.
In a similar development, Binance suspended Faster Payments Service (FPS) in light of the pressure it is currently facing. Speaking of suspensions, there have also been a series of suspensions by some UK banks who told their clients via mails that authorities have outlawed activities of Binance in the country. As such, they will no longer allow customers to make deposits from their bank accounts to the accounts on the exchange. Barclays Banks became the first UK bank to take this step, followed by another, Santander Bank.
UK Users Abandon Binance For Other Exchanges
According to reports, UK investors and traders are now leaving Binance exchange for rival exchanges. Bitstamp reported an expansion in its user base of late. Kraken also reported the same development. Week in, week out, the pressure on Binance keeps mounting, but it has allayed fears of users as regards it trading services. Binance said its trading services are still up and running. Certainly, more users will withdraw their funds and leave the exchange in the coming weeks, despite the assurance.
The UK is not the only country that currently has Binance on its regulatory radar. Events coming to light within the last few weeks reveal that Binance is also encountering challenges in South Korea, Cayman Islands, Canada, Thailand. In fact, Thailand’s SEC accused Binance of running its operations without permission from relevant authorities. Meanwhile, Binance’s CEO Chanpang Zhao, popularly known as CZ, has assured the Binance community of the exchange’s compliance. In a recent statement, he reiterated Binance’s commitment to authorities.
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