Binance has been making headlines while its rival FTX continues to fall. While the entire community has been witnessing the unfolding of the FTX debacle, Binance was on an expansion spree. However, a recent announcement by the firm did instill a level of fear among investors.
The world’s largest crypto exchange shared a notice with the community that new user registrations in Japan would be shut down. Binance revealed that it was “proactively” trying to comply with the local regulations and as a result, it had to block new users from registering on the platform.
The latest update will be effective starting November 20, post 8:00 [UTC]. Binance further affirmed that its existing users weren’t part of this as they would be allowed to employ all the services that the exchange has to offer. The exchange wrote,
“Our aim is to create a sustainable ecosystem around blockchain technology and digital assets, and we hope that such efforts will help the industry grow in the local market in the long run.”
Binance veers into Japan by acquiring Sakura Exchange BitCoin
Right after the above notice, Binance rolled out another statement highlighting its latest acquisition. As per the post, the exchange had acquired 100 percent of Sakura Exchange BitCoin [SEBC]. Since this is a registered crypto exchange in Japan, Binance is also considered a Japan Financial Services Agency [JFSA] regulated entity.
The exchange based in Tokyo offers a variety of services alongside brokerage. The firm currently supports only 11 trading pairs that include BTC/JPY, ETH/JPY, BCH/JPY, XRP/JPY, LTC/JPY, ETC/JPY, XEM/JPY, MONA/JPY, ADA/JPY, XYM/JPY, and COT/JPY.
Speaking about Binance’s latest move, Takeshi Chino, the general manager of the exchange’s Japanese wing said,
“As one of the world’s leading economies with a highly-developed tech ecosystem, it’s already poised for strong blockchain uptake. We will actively work with regulators to develop our combined exchange in a compliant way for local users. We are eager to help Japan take a leading role in crypto.”
The Japanese government was one of the first entities to speak up and take action against FTX. While several assumed that Japan along with other nations would be hostile towards crypto, it was certainly making big moves in direction of the industry.