The guidelines in question were published in February, and Binance worked with Canadian regulators for several weeks in order to reach a solution that would allow the company to continue its operations in the North American country. However, since no solution was reached, the cryptocurrency exchange has announced its withdrawal from the Canadian marketplace.
Binance representatives cited by htxt.co.za detailed that they had high hopes for the Canadian blockchain ecosystem but these new guidelines for stablecoins and investor limits provided to crypto exchanges make the Canadian market no longer sustainable for Binance at this time. It’s worth noting that the company has not given up on the notion of operating in Canada once again sometime in the future.
The guidance in question came from the Canadian Securities Administration (CSA), and it introduced strict rules regarding cryptocurrencies operating in the country. For instance, the guidance requires that CSA approval be sought before allowing users to deposit or buy stablecoins. Furthermore, the CSA informed crypto exchanges that they had 30 days to comply with its new guidance or they would have to leave Canada.
Canada-based Binance users will receive emails with information about the impact this move will have on their accounts going forward. Binance officials expressed that they do not agree with the new guidance but expressed their hope that they will be able to return to the Canadian market someday.
In May 2023, Binance.US backed out of a deal to purchase USD 1 billion of bankrupt cryptocurrency brokerage Voyager Digital assets. Even though Voyager, the Voyager Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors and the U.S. government have reached an agreement on 19 April 2023 for the acquisition to commence, Binance.US decided to terminate the asset purchase agreement due to the hostile and uncertain regulatory climate in the US.
Binance.US representatives cited by cointelegraph.com expressed that their initial intentions were to help Voyager's customers access their crypto in kind and motivated their decision by pointing to the unpredictable operating environment caused by uncertain regulations in the US.
In March 2023, Binance joined the FIDO Alliance and prepared to implement passkey technology. By joining the FIDO Alliance, the company was looking to improve the security and convenience of its users.
To enhance security, Binance wants to implement passkeys, which are based on FIDO standards and act as strong, phishing-resistant password replacements. Passkeys allow users to sign in across multiple sites, apps, and devices quickly and safely with local biometric authorisation.
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