Binance Moves to Malta Amid Fears of a Japanese Crackdown
Mar 24, 2018, 9:59PM
Japanese financial regulators issued a warning to Binance. Soon after, the company closed its Japanese office and moved operations to Malta.
The Japanese Financial Services Agency (FSA) has decided to crack down on Binance, a popular digital asset exchange based in Hong Kong. In response, the company has closed its Tokyo office and is planning to open a new office in Malta. The announcement of these events, given the massive popularity of the Binance exchange, caused a slight drop in the price of Bitcoin, but the value loss has since been recouped.
Binance is the world's largest crypto exchange by trade volume and receives approximately 9% of its traffic from Japan. The FSA has issued a warning to the company for operating without a proper license. Licensing is already essential in Japan because Japanese authorities consider Bitcoin a legal tender, and exchanges must comply with the regulations that the FSA already has in place.
Zhao Changpeng, the CEO of Binance, has acknowledged receipt of the warning, stating in a tweet published Thursday: "Our lawyers called JFSA immediately and we will find a solution." Meanwhile, however, the company has decided to close its Tokyo office and move operations to Malta on the premise that the Mediterranean island has a more progressive attitude towards cryptocurrency.
Binance's decision to leave Japan led to a slight drop in the market cap of Bitcoin following a Nikkei report suggesting the company may face criminal charges resulting from its office closure. These rumors turned out to be false according to a statement published by the JFSA on Friday. The price of Bitcoin has since recovered.
Disclaimer: information contained herein is provided without considering your personal circumstances, therefore should not be construed as financial advice, investment recommendation or an offer of, or solicitation for, any transactions in cryptocurrencies.
Advertising
