Binance.US, the U.S. affiliate of leading crypto exchange Binance, announced on Wednesday that its ability to service customers through bank accounts has been fully restored. Operating for the past 19 months as a “crypto-only” exchange, Binance.US’s Interim CEO Norman Reed described the development as a welcome shift in a written statement.
“We were forced to begin operating as a crypto-only platform,” Reed said. “We have been looking forward to the day that we would be able to offer full USD services again.”
In June 2023, Binance.US stopped accepting and processing fiat-based deposits and withdrawals. In a post on X (formerly known as Twitter), the company claimed that it had been impacted by “aggressive and intimidating tactics” at the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Binance.US isolated itself from U.S. banks days after the SEC initiated a lawsuit against the exchange, its international affiliate, and Binance co-founder and former CEO Changpeng Zhao. The regulator alleged that Binance and Binance.US operated as unregistered securities exchanges, while offering certain products violated the agency’s rules.
Since the departure of former SEC Chair Gary Gensler last month, the agency’s stance against crypto firms has softened. Instead of pushing ahead with enforcement actions against a myriad of crypto firms, Acting SEC Chair Mark Uyeda has vowed to make the SEC a collaborative player in establishing clearer industry rules.
Just 19 months ago, Binance said that the SEC’s legal pursuit had “created challenges for the banks with whom we work.” It encouraged users to withdraw U.S. dollars with five days’ notice, until the crypto firm could “secure more stable banking partners.”
Lawmakers have recently begun investigating “debanking” on Capitol Hill, looking into whether crypto firms in particular have been targeted by a plot dubbed “Operation Choke Point 2.0.” A Binance.US spokesperson told Decrypt that the company isn’t able to disclose the name of its banking partner at this time.
While Binance is regarded as the world’s largest crypto exchange, Binance.US is barely a blip on the radar in terms of trading volume. Over the past day, Binance has facilitated $19 billion worth of crypto trades, while Binance.US has facilitated just $15 million worth, per CoinGecko.
Binance maintains that it and Binance.US are separate companies. A lawsuit filed by the CFTC in 2023, however, alleged that Zhao envisioned the U.S. exchange as ideally a “navy boat” to Binance’s “pirate ship.”
As part of a deal with the CFTC, the Justice Department, and other government agencies, Binance and Zhao pleaded guilty to settle anti-money laundering and sanctions violations.
Binance exited the U.S. market and agreed to pay a $4.3 billion penalty. Zhao stepped down as CEO and served a four-month prison sentence stemming from the deal.
The SEC’s case against the exchange is still ongoing. But just last week, a U.S. district judge granted a 60-day pause in the ongoing legal battle, allowing both parties to assess how regulatory developments may ultimately impact the case’s resolution.
Edited by Stacy Elliott.