June was a tough month for Binance as it faced global stress tests after the US Securities and Exchange Commission filed a lawsuit against the crypto exchange and its leadership.
In short: in the last 30 days, the Belgian financial regulator has ordered Binance to suspend all crypto services, the exchange has failed to obtain a license in the Netherlands, the Brazilian head of Binance has been subpoenaed to appear before Congress over a Ponzi scheme investigation, and First A few days ago, another ongoing investigation in France became public.
And there’s more: Binance’s UK-based subsidiary has de-registered with the Financial Conduct Authority, and in the US, the exchange still has a long way to go in its battle with regulators. Additionally, the exchange in Germany was denied a crypto custody license and lost its euro banking partner.
But despite all these developments, Binance remains the undisputed leader among centralized exchanges with a total value of $58.11 billion, compared to $63.8 billion on June 1, according to data from DefiLlama. The exchange’s next major focus is the United Arab Emirates, a reportedly “first destination” for crypto companies seeking a clear path forward.
“We keep building,” Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao said in a tweet on June 28 after a long and hectic month.
This week, Crypto Biz covers the story behind Binance’s debanking in Australia, Bitcoin (BTC) miners preparing for the next halving, MicroStrategy’s recent Bitcoin purchase, and Bitfinex’s expansion in Latin America.
According to the chief executive, Binance Australia was notified 12 hours in advance before the account was deducted
There was no prior warning, consultation or redress. In the middle of the night, the Binance Australia team was suddenly told it was going to be “cut off” from the country’s banking system. Binance regional manager Ben Rose shared details of the exchange’s debanking in the country at Australian Blockchain Week on June 26. In May, the company announced that its dollar services had been suspended after its payments provider, Zepto, was ordered to stop supporting Binance. According to Rose, the move affected around 1 million Australian-based customers and Binance was now looking for an alternative payment provider.
Ben Rose (right) on stage at Australian Blockchain Week. Source: Cointelegraph
Riot Platforms plans to add 33,000 bitcoin miners ahead of the 2024 halving
Bitcoin mining company Riot Platforms is preparing for the next halving cycle by purchasing 33,280 “next-generation” drill rigs for its Texas facility, costing $162.9 million. The miners, sourced from MicroBT, will increase the company’s self-mining capacity by 7.6 exahashes per second (EH/s) to 20.1 EH/s once the machines are installed in Q1 2024. Among the machines are 8,320 M56S+ models with a hash rate of 220 terahashes per second (TH/s), while the remaining 24,960 M56S++ are slightly more powerful at 230 TH/s.
MicroStrategy buys $347 million worth of Bitcoin amid market frenzy
On June 28, MicroStrategy announced the purchase of 12,333 bitcoin, valued at $347 million at the time of publication. MicroStrategy now owns 152,333 BTC worth $4.52 billion, with an average purchase price of $29,668 per coin. The coins were purchased between April 27 and June 27, with the purchase funded in part by the issuance of new shares. MicroStrategy has been actively buying Bitcoin with cash and equity funding during the crypto bear market, sometimes regardless of price. In the first quarter of 2023, the company reported its first profitable quarter since 2020 due to a one-time income tax benefit.
Bitfinex launches P2P trading platform in Venezuela, Argentina and Colombia
Digital asset exchange Bitfinex is expanding its operations into Latin America. The crypto company has launched a peer-to-peer trading platform in Venezuela, Argentina and Colombia, allowing users in the South American countries to buy Bitcoin, Ether (ETH), Tether (USDT) and Tether’s euro-pegged stablecoin Tether and for sale EURt (EURT) and Tether Gold (XAUT). In April, Bitfinex’s El Salvador arm received a license as a digital asset service provider from the National Digital Asset Commission. Last month, the exchange partnered with Chile-based crypto platform OrionX to support local education and financial literacy programs.
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