The office of Binance Australia, the Aussie arm of the largest crypto exchange by trading volume, has been searched by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), the country's financial regulator, according to a recent report from Bloomberg citing people familiar with the issue. The search has been conducted as part of an ongoing probe over the platform's local derivatives business. In April, Binance announced that it would permanently shut down its Australian derivatives business after the unit's financial services license was canceled by the ASIC. - The cancellation came nearly two months after the regulator launched a targeted review of Binance over the derivatives unit's classification of retail and wholesale clients in the country.
- Binance had previously closed the positions of 500 users in Australia after it incorrectly labeled some users as wholesale investors rather than retail investors.
- In response to the recent news on the search, the exchange said it is cooperating with the Aussie authorities and focusing on meeting local regulatory standards to serve its users in Australia in a fully compliant manner.
Last month, Binance also lost the support of its local banking partner in Australia and was forced to suspend Australian dollar (AUD) deposits and withdrawals through bank transfers. - Over the last several months, the platform similarly came under increased scrutiny in many other countries, including the U.S., France, and Belgium.
- Besides, the company recently had to withdraw from several markets in the West, including Canada, the Netherlands, Cyprus, and the U.K.
|
