Binance.US, the American affiliate of leading crypto exchange Binance, announced in a tweet late Thursday that it would suspend US dollar deposits into the platform as early as June 13, 2023. The decision aligns with its recent fallout with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which accused the exchange and its CEO, Changpeng Zhao, of breaching securities laws.
Binance.US also confirmed it would cut ties with its banking partners, who would discontinue sanctioning US dollar withdrawals on the aforementioned date. Furthermore, the exchange urged customers to withdraw their USD and assured them that it would process their withdrawals in the shortest possible time.
“Our priority is, and has always been, our customers. We are taking these proactive steps as we-for a time-transition to a crypto-only exchange. To be clear, we maintain 1:1 reserves for all customer assets. Any downtime in processing withdrawals may be the result of elevated volumes and weekend bank closures. Moreover, trading, staking, deposits, and withdrawals in crypto remain fully operational,” Binance tweeted.
Crypto-Only Exchange
Binance also confirmed it would be delisting trading pairs affiliated with the USD starting next week but would continue to accept stablecoins. Stablecoins are tokens designed to maintain a 1:1 peg with the US dollar. A few popular stablecoins are USDT, USDC, and UST.
Binance maintained that it would continue to serve its American users with staking, trading, deposits, and withdrawals of cryptocurrencies unrelated to the USD. The exchange cited that the move was a proactive step against the “extremely aggressive and intimidating tactics” employed by the SEC against it.
A Possible USD Depeg
In a similar fashion to the scenario of Bitcoin price capitulation on Binance’s Australian exchange a few days ago, USD might depeg from US dollars before the withdrawal suspension comes in the next four days. Bitcoin fell as low as $17,000 on the exchange a few days to withdrawal suspension.
Binance also made a similar announcement in Australia, stating it would delist all Australian Dollar (AUD) trading pairs on June 1 after the exchange fell out with Australian regulators. The Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) withdrew Binance’s derivative license and is probing the exchange over a possible digital asset regulation breach.
