Binance Exchange has returned, but in a different guise?

As part of the fifth package of sanctions against Russia and Russian citizens, the EU has forced the Binance exchange to restrict the capabilities of Russians to use the platform. The first restriction appeared in April 2022 when Russians were prohibited from holding more than 10,000 euros on European crypto accounts and wallets.

News ID: ۸۴۱۱۲۵

10 May 2024

Subsequently, as part of the eighth package, the EU introduced a "Complete ban on providing services for servicing wallets, accounts, and depositories of crypto assets to Russian individuals and residents, regardless of the total value of these crypto assets," the EU Council said in a statement.

On the Binance.com website, there is information that they plan to open a new exchange and obtain a license in Hong Kong. This would allow them to continue operating with sanctioned countries without the risk of facing sanctions again.

https://www.forbes.ru/finansy/497380-binance-uhodit-iz-rossii-zacem-eto-nuzno-i-cto-delat-pol-zovatelam

Binance was not satisfied with such a statement, as 7% of the platform's users are from the Russian segment, and they are not ready to part with them.
Binance publicly removed ruble trading pairs from the market. However, if you were previously registered and had access to a verified Russian account, you could still see this market. There is a large number of transactions made by Russians after they publicly removed ruble trading pairs from the market, but this did not become a long-term solution to the problem.

Earlier, according to American legislation, the Binance exchange could not work with clients from the United States, so they created Binance U.S., which was positioned as an independent platform separate from the main exchange.

However, in early March, The Wall Street Journal, which gained access to internal correspondence and documents of Binance, concluded that the independence of Binance.US was merely a formality to divert the regulator's attention. The companies belong to the same structure financially and in terms of personnel.

Subsequently, the United States filed a lawsuit against Binance (source: Forbes).

In August 2023, the US Department of Justice initiated an investigation into the exchange due to possible violations of anti-Russian sanctions. It was then, in September 2023, that Binance sold its entire Russian business, CommEx. However, this action raised even more questions, as information about the company became known only at the time users were redirected to it.

"Experts are confident that the new company is backed by employees of Binance itself, and the reason for the departure is to appease the US government, which has been in litigation with Binance since the summer of 2023," as reported by Comnews.

A Binance representative told a correspondent from Comnews the following:

"CommEx was unable to fulfill its obligations to Binance as part of the deal we concluded with them in September 2023. This decision does not affect our obligations to existing Russian users, whose digital assets remain secure. However, current users will no longer be redirected to CommEx. We plan to permanently close all Binance services and operations in Russia, while making every effort to ensure uninterrupted service for users during this transition."

"As a lawyer with considerable experience in corporate law, I understand perfectly well that, in fact, Binance hasn't gone anywhere; it's still with us but under a different guise. The company most likely created a friendly structure that can operate in Russia without any difference from the one Binance operated before," said Nikolay Kolesnikov, director of a legal company.

Recently, the new Russian exchange, Rublex, announced its existence. There are rumors that it is a product of Binance Cloud.

Experts have identified clear signs of this exchange's ownership by Binance, such as a 90% similarity in appearance and functionality.

Recently, the new Russian exchange, Rublex, announced its existence.

There are rumors that it is a product of Binance Cloud.

Additionally, the Rublex exchange has its token on the Binance Smart Chain network, which demonstrates its dependence on Binance. However, neither Binance nor Rublex has provided official comments regarding their relationship. It is possible that this exchange was created to continue operating with countries against which sanctions have been imposed.