In a move that signifies the mounting pressure faced by the cryptocurrency industry, Binance, a leading cryptocurrency exchange, has decided to delist privacy-focused tokens for customers residing in certain European nations.
Countries such as France, Italy, Spain, and Poland will witness the termination of trading in privacy tokens including Monero (XMR) and Zcash (ZEC) from June 26.
The impetus for this decision seems to lie in a bid to comply with local regulations and laws that oversee the trading of privacy-centric coins.
A total of twelve coins will be impacted by the change including Decred (DCR), Dash (DASH), ZEC, Horizen (ZEN), PIVX (PIVX), Navcoin (NAV), Secret (SCRT), Verge (XVG), Firo (FIRO), Beam (BEAM), XMR, and MobileCoin (MOB).
Binance’s commitment to compliance
A spokesperson for Binance, elucidating the move, asserted that the platform’s objective remained the support of as many quality projects as feasible.
However, in the face of legislative norms, the exchange is compelled to curb trading of privacy coins to perpetuate serving a maximum number of users.
As a measure to ensure transparency in this major shift, Binance has initiated communication with the affected users, informing them about the upcoming restrictions.
Binance, in a communique to French patrons, attributed the move to the stringent local regulatory requisites in several European countries. The ban applies to enhanced anonymity crypto assets, also referred to as CAE.
Privacy coins under the scanner
Privacy-focused tokens such as Monero or Zcash, different from conventional cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, are engineered to obscure blockchain transactions, enhancing user privacy.
This unique feature has led to mounting scrutiny from global governments, who argue against the adoption of such cryptocurrencies and crypto privacy tools, citing potential misuse for illicit activities such as money laundering and terrorist financing.
This shift by Binance isn’t an isolated incident in the crypto landscape. Back in September 2022, another major crypto exchange, Huobi, discontinued support for seven privacy coins, including Monero, citing regulatory pressures.
This was followed by US authorities imposing sanctions on the utilization of a significant crypto mixer, Tornado Cash.
The heightened scrutiny of privacy tokens comes amidst an escalating global regulatory focus on crypto platforms, with major Anti-Money Laundering (AML) regulations being instituted by the Financial Action Task Force, notably the Travel Rule.
This rule mandates the disclosure of certain customer data related to crypto transactions to regulatory bodies.
As the world navigates through the intricacies of regulating the cryptocurrency space, exchanges like Binance will likely continue to adapt to the evolving legal landscape, emphasizing the importance of transparency and regulatory compliance.
