Trading Activity Tanks 98% Amid SEC Squabble

Binance.US finds itself grappling with an array of difficult obstacles, each of which has contributed to a notable downturn in its trading operations.

These unforeseen obstacles have collectively cast a shadow over the platform’s once-vibrant trading landscape, prompting concerns about its sustained viability in the market.

The monthly trading volume of Binance.US, the American counterpart of the renowned global cryptocurrency exchange Binance, has plummeted by 98% from January to August 2022, according to statistics from independent research firm CCData, with additional declines anticipated for September.

Binance.US Trading Volume Takes A Hit

The trading volume on Binance.US dropped to $5.09 million over the weekend, data from Amberdata shows. As a comparison, the exchange’s trading volume was around $230 million on September 17, 2022.

The majority of the fall has occurred subsequent to March, coinciding with the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s allegations against Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao for regulatory infractions.

In June, the US Securities and Exchange Commission initiated legal action against Binance.US, Zhao, and his primary exchange, Binance, for a range of infractions, which encompassed the alleged misrepresentation of trading controls and oversight on the Binance.US platform.

The Miami-headquartered company is now engaged in a legal battle, leading the SEC to assert in a filing on Monday that Binance.US has demonstrated an inconsistency in maintaining a coherent narrative.

Bitcoin price improves a bit to $26,819 today. Chart: TradingView.com

Following the lawsuit, Binance.US suspended trading for more than 100 token pairs, leading to a significant drop in exchange activity and investor confidence.

Additionally, the company faced internal challenges, including the resignation of its CEO, Brian Shorder, and other key executives like Head of Legal Krishna Juvvadi and Chief Risk Officer Sidney Majalya, who departed in the weeks following Shorder’s exit.

The SEC said that the significant flight of Binance.US personnel is accelerating, which emphasises the essential need for quick investigation into these problems right away.

Judge Denies SEC Access To Binance.US Info

Meanwhile, the SEC had a setback when a federal magistrate judge stopped them from getting instant access to Binance.US’s software. Since the regulator charged Binance.US, Binance Holdings, and Zhao in June, the SEC has been having trouble getting information from Binance.US.

On Monday, the SEC asked a federal magistrate judge for permission to look at Binance.US’s technology infrastructure and force the business to share other information.

SEC’s crypto case suffered a minor procedural roadblock from the magistrate’s denial of instant access. The SEC said that Binance.US produced fewer than 250 documents and three deposition witnesses.

Data from CoinGecko shows that as of Monday, Binance.US had a daily trading volume of about $10.5 million. The largest cryptocurrency exchange in the US, Coinbase Global Inc., reported a daily trading volume of $948 million in contrast to this.

Featured image from Securities Finance Times