The world’s largest crypto exchange, Binance, said it’s exiting the Dutch market as it has been unable to obtain registration as a crypto service provider. The news comes after Binance’s entity in Cyprus applied to be removed from the country’s register of digital asset service providers.
Binance Leaves the Netherlands and Cyprus to Focus on Other EU Jurisdictions
Binance, the leading global cryptocurrency exchange, is pulling out of the Netherlands. On Friday, the company revealed that its attempts to work in the country in compliance with local regulations have not resulted in a registration as a virtual asset service provider (VASP).
Starting from July 17, existing customers will only be able to withdraw assets, Binance said in an announcement, while deposits, purchases, and trades will not be possible. “With immediate effect, no new users residing in the Netherlands will be accepted,” the platform emphasized.
promised to “continue striving to obtain authorizations to provide our products and services to users in the Netherlands,” while pointing out it already meets requirements in other EU member states and prepares to be fully compliant with the bloc’s recently adopted Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) rules.
The exchange also stated it will “engage productively and transparently with Dutch regulators” in the future. It has been previously warned by De Nederlandsche Bank, the Dutch monetary authority, that it’s operating without registration and fined in January, Reuters said in the report.
The largest crypto exchange by trading volume has been under increased regulatory scrutiny. Last week, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) sued Binance, its founder Changpeng Zhao and its American subsidiary for violating securities laws in the United States. Binance has also recently announced plans to leave Canada and Australia.
Earlier this week, media reports unveiled that Binance Cyprus Ltd., the exchange’s Cypriot entity, has requested to be removed from the country’s register of crypto asset service providers, as evident from its listing on the local securities regulator’s website. It was registered in October 2022.
A spokesperson explained the move with Binance’s intention to focus on its other regulated units in EU countries such as France, Italy, and Spain ahead of the implementation of the Union’s new crypto regulations in the next 18 months. “We are working hard to prepare our business to be fully compliant with MiCA,” the company representative stated.
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