Amid its ongoing legal tussle with U.S regulators, leading crypto exchange, Binance has applied to deregister its service offerings in Cyprus. Binbits confirmed this development through the website of the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission. Meanwhile, the regulator said it is now examining the application from the exchange.
It is worth mentioning that the exchange won the registration in Cyprus last year. The registration allowed it to run as a crypto asset provider in the country. This thus covers rendering of spot, custody, staking and other services to Cyprus residents. Now, the exchange wants to quit its presence in the country. According to its spokesperson, Binance made the move to focus its compliance mechanism on fewer regulatory entities in the EU.
Binance versus SEC
Recall that Binance has been embroiled in several regulatory issues, particularly with regulators in the United States. Barely a week ago, the Securities and Exchange Commission filed 13 charges against Binance and its founder, Changpeng Zhao. According to the filing, Binance and Zhao misled unsuspecting investors about their risk controls and corrupted trading volumes. Likewise, the regulator said Binance and its affiliate in the United States operated as an unregistered securities exchange.
Following this development, SEC made an attempt to secure a restraining order from the court to freeze the assets of Binance.US. At the hearing on Tuesday, Binance tackled the motion; stressing that it could end its business in the country if granted. Earlier today, the legal tussle took a bigger dimension as the Court ruled against SEC’s motion.
In her ruling, Judge Amy Berman Jackson of the US District Court urged the two parties to reach a settlement and submit a status update on Thursday. She also expressed reservations about the manner in which the regulator has been using its enforcement powers to clampdown on the crypto industry, describing it as totally inefficient and cumbersome.
CFTC Lawsuit
Prior to this lawsuit by SEC, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has also filed similar charges against Binance. In its own filing, the agency accused Binance of operating an illegal exchange and a sham compliance program. The numerous lawsuits against the exchange has continued to send shock waves to the crypto market. Amid the issues, it witnessed massive rate of withdrawals on its network. However, it expressed confidence in defending itself against the legal tussles.
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