Amid ongoing pushbacks from global regulators, the popular cryptocurrency exchange Binance continues its retreat from significant markets. Its UK-based subsidiary, Binance Markets Limited (BML), has officially cancelled its registration with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
Withdrawing from the United Kingdom!
In the wake of the registration’s cancellation, no Binance entity has been granted authority by the FCA to provide any service in the UK, as indicated on the regulator’s website. The FCA clarified that Binance had completed the cancellation request for BML’s permissions with the authority on May 30, 2023. The regulator noted in a statement on June 7:
Following the completion of the cancellation of permissions, the firm is no longer authorized by the FCA.
According to a regional director at Binance, the cancellation of BML’s registration had no operational effect on Binance since BML never went operational in the country. Ilir Laro, the sub-regional director responsible for Binance’s growth in the UK and Europe, argued that BML never conducted a “regulated business” in the UK. The director stated:
BML was successfully acquired by Binance Group in 2020 to set up a regulated business in the UK. However, this venture did not succeed, and it has remained idle since its acquisition.
Binance Announcements!
In his statements on Twitter on Sunday, Laro pointed out that Binance still has five regulated entities in Europe, including France, Italy, Spain, Poland, and Sweden. He said:
As MiCA comes into effect in 2024/5, we are shifting our focus to preparation, which means consolidating a bit to get a passport across Europe.
The executive also referred to the reasons behind Binance’s regulatory retreat in countries like Cyprus, the Netherlands, and Nigeria. Binance previously faced some regulatory issues in the UK. In 2021, the FCA issued an order to Binance to cease all regulatory activities in the country.
The news comes shortly after Binance’s chief strategy officer Patrick Hillmann expressed the company’s commitment to regulation in the UK amid Binance’s troubles in the US. As reported earlier, Binance is facing two lawsuits from US regulators, including the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
