A recent report from Nikkei suggests that Japan’s Financial Services Agency (JFSA) will issue a formal warning to cryptocurrency exchange Binance, for operating without a license in the country. The exchange’s CEO, Changpeng Zhao, recently denied these claims and dubbed the report “irresponsible journalism.”
Japan’s FSA would reportedly see the exchange cease operations in the country until it grants it official approval. The warning against Binance would be followed by a criminal complaint, as the regulator would reportedly press criminal charges if the company did not register with it, as recently reported.
The exchange’s leader took to Twitter to answer Nikkei’s report. He revealed the company is in “constructive dialogs” with the regulator, and assured users it didn’t receive any mandates. He added that it doesn’t make sense for the JFSA to inform a media outlet about the mandate before informing the company while dialog is ongoing.
Nikkei showed irresponsible journalism. We are in constructive dialogs with Japan FSA, and have not received any mandates. It does not make sense for JFSA to tell a newspaper before telling us, while we have an active dialog going on with them.
— CZ 🔶 Binance (@cz_binance) March 22, 2018
Hong Kong-based Binance is notably one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges, as it often sees a $2 billion daily trading volume. It was launched through an ICO (initial coin offering) where it sold its own BNB tokens, which can be used on the platform.
Responding to chatter on Twitter, Zhao further noted that although social media allows people to spread FUD (Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt), it also allows Binance to have a voice. This, he noted, is “a big upside, I think it outweighs the negative.”
Japanese regulators have been clamping down on cryptocurrency exchanges this year, after Tokyo-based Coincheck saw hackers steal over $500 million worth of NEM from its wallets.
According to reports, the FSA has issued licenses to 16 cryptocurrency exchanges so far, including Quoine and bitFlyer. Two exchanges were forced to suspend all service due to inadequate security, while another five were told to create a “Security Improvement Plan.”
Binance has recently announced it will launch a completely decentralized cryptocurrency exchange to run alongside its current platform. The company’s team has been creating a “tailored blockchain” that will allow its new platform, Binance Chain, to trade cryptocurrencies in a decentralized way.
Bitcoin’s price was affected by the news. At press time, the flagship cryptocurrency saw its price fall by 4.8 percent in the last 24-hour period to $8,636, according to data from CryptoCompare. As covered by Ethereum World News, this isn’t the first time Binance affects the cryptocurrency’s price, as rumors it got hacked also saw bitcoin decline.
