Binance to Remove 102 Spot Trading Pairs and Halt OTC Services

Binance.US will delist over 100 trading pairs and suspend its OTC services following the SEC’s lawsuit against Binance.

In an additional development, Binance.US, the American arm of the renowned cryptocurrency exchange Binance, has announced its delisting of a substantial number of trading pairs.

The decision came two days after the exchange was hit with a lawsuit by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Mass Delisting, OTC Halting

In an official statement released on June 7, 2023, Binance.US disclosed its plans to remove numerous spot trading pairs involving USDT, BTC, and BUSD.

The scope of this delisting is noteworthy, as it encompasses a total of 102 trading pairs, including 92 with USDT, 8 with BTC, and 2 with BUSD. Removing these pairs is slated to take effect on June 8.

Binance.US will significantly limit the range of coins available for trading, restricting it to a curated selection that includes USDT, USDC, BNB, ETH, BTC, FET, ATOM, APT, MATIC, LTC, DOGE, SHIB, FTM, APE, SOL, LINK, ADA, DOT, GALA, and AVAX. This limited set of coins will be accompanied by 226 supported trading pairs.

Additionally, Binance.US has decided to suspend its Over-the-Counter (OTC) trading portal, marking a further shift in its operational strategies.

The reasons underlying Binance.US’s delisting spree remain elusive. The list of discontinued trading pairs encompasses not only tokens implicated in the SEC lawsuit, accused of being unregistered securities but also tokens that had not been previously affected by regulatory scrutiny.

Nonetheless, Binance.US quickly clarified that the basic functionalities of depositing, withdrawing, and trading would remain intact for trading pairs not mentioned in their recent announcement. This assurance seeks to alleviate concerns among users who might fear disruptions or limitations to their trading activities.

The ongoing lawsuit between Binance.US and the SEC has brought the spotlight firmly onto Binance, the global parent company. The legal battle has left a profound impact on the cryptocurrency market, with significant repercussions reverberating throughout the industry.

The SEC’s allegations against Binance.US, Binance Global, and their CEO, Changpeng Zhao, are multi-faceted, centering around alleged violations of investor protection regulations, the unauthorized sale of securities, and manipulative trading practices.

The SEC has levied 13 charges against the company, highlighting a range of alleged transgressions.

Binance.US has previously faced accusations of commingling user funds by engaging in trading activities through entities purportedly owned by Mr. Zhao, specifically Merit Peak and Sigma Chain, without proper disclosure to customers.

Binance disclosed an official statement after the legal action commenced. The exchange assured that user funds held on Binance.US were never at risk.

Seeking to secure control over the situation, the SEC subsequently filed a statement requesting an asset freeze on Binance.US. However, the regulatory body also sought to ensure that the exchange would honor users’ withdrawal requests, safeguarding their access to funds.

Ethereum Staking Under Pressure

Apart from Binance.US, the SEC also filed a lawsuit against Coinbase, Binance’s biggest competitor. As the legal battle rages on, ongoing concerns are on Coinbase’s Ethereum staking program.

According to the SEC’s filing, Coinbase was accused of offering unregistered securities – those cryptocurrencies are SOL, ADA, MATIC, FIL, SAND, AXS, CHZ, FLOW, ICP, NEAR, VGX, DASH, and NEXO.

The agency is reportedly after Coinbase’s staking program, thus ordering the exchange to suspend this product. In February, the SEC started its staking crackdown on Kraken, prompting the exchange to close its service following the settlement.

Despite the regulatory turmoil, the second-largest entity for ETH liquidity staking has confirmed that it will continue to provide staking services without interruption.

There seems to be a new lawsuit filed almost everyday in the US, which makes the future of crypto in US markets look shaky. Without the ability to do business legally, US crypto users may have to look for other ways to trade.