The Cryptocurrency juggernaut, Binance’s European expansion is coming to a pause after the exchange withdrew an application for registration with the Austrian Financial Market Authority (FMA).
This comes shortly after Binance said it will leave the Netherlands after the company’s application to register under the Dutch crypto authorization regime was rejected. The crypto giant announced that as of July 17, trading in the Netherlands will cease and existing Dutch users will only be able to withdraw assets from the platform. It seems that the exchange is increasingly coming under pressure in Europe as well, following its tussle with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Binance Pulls Back From Austria
According to a new report, the exchange has withdrawn the license application from the Austrian financial regulator FMA some time ago after the Austrian authority allegedly exerted pressure in the background. However, neither the authority nor the exchange wanted to comment on the move publicly.
The incident manages to paint a grim picture regarding the various regulatory stance disrupting the digital assets industry all over the world. Such attacks on the crypto space continue to dampen the spirit among crypto enthusiasts.
The development comes just a year after the exchange announced that it wanted to expand to Austria. Following the announcement, the crypto exchange was launched in the country under the name “Binance Austria GmbH” and wanted to obtain a license for the subsidiary.
However, it looks like the plan has faltered for now as it has withdrawn its application for registration from Austria. In the wake of the recent move, a company spokesperson stated,
“We are unable to provide details from our discussions with regulators, but we will continue to act in accordance with our commitments wherever Binance operates. In Europe, our current focus is to ensure we are fully compliant with the MiCA requirements when they roll out late next year.”
Regulatory Woes Continue To Hamper Binance
Binance has been in the thick of a regulatory war for the past couple of months. In Belgium, the financial regulator asked the exchange to take “immediate measures” to return all Belgian customers their crypto assets or transfer them to a service that has permission. In France, investigations are ongoing over money laundering through involvement in investment, concealment, and exchange transactions.
Binance ordered to stop all digital currency services in Belgium https://t.co/13ZfJOLXSE pic.twitter.com/1Rd5iHhapF
— Reuters (@Reuters) June 24, 2023
Binance’s Cyprus unit has also recently, applied to be removed from the Cyprus register of crypto asset service providers. In the U.S., the SEC sued Binance for violating securities laws. Recently, Britain’s financial regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), also approved a request by Binance to cancel its regulatory permissions in the United Kingdom.
Moreover, Binance said earlier this year, it was withdrawing from Canada, weeks after the country issued a series of new guidelines for cryptocurrency exchanges including investor limits and mandatory registrations. The digital assets industry has been in the crosshairs of regulators around the world, especially since the collapse of Binance-rival FTX in November, which triggered a market rout in the prices of the biggest digital coins.
