The largest crypto exchange in the world, Binance, has declared that it plans to eliminate various trading pairs associated with the Australian dollar (AUD) from its platform on May 26, 2023. The move comes amid a range of issues, including PayID withdrawals and license cancellations. However, Binance has not provided any specific reasons for the removal of these trading pairs.
At 2023-05-26 05:00 (UTC), Binance will remove and cease trading on a number of AUD spot trading pairs. This includes APE/AUD, AVAX/AUD, AXS/AUD, DOT/AUD, FTM/AUD, LINK/AUD, SAND/AUD, SHIB/AUD. Less than 1% of our users trade AUD pairs. All users can still trade these assets on…
— Binance Australia (@Binance_AUS) May 24, 2023
Binance Facing Transactions Difficulties
Recent actions from Binance have sparked market speculations, with some suggesting a possible link to Binance’s ongoing banking challenges in Australia. Binance’s Australian branch had recently announced that specific local customers would be unable to deposit or withdraw funds due to a third-party payment provider’s suspension of services.
Fellow Binancians,
— Binance Australia (@Binance_AUS) May 18, 2023
We regret to inform you that with immediate effect we are unable to facilitate PayID AUD deposits for Binance users due to a decision made by our third party payment service provider. We understand from our third party payment service provider that Bank…
This payment provider was later identified as Westpac Banking Corp, the country’s second-largest retail bank. Westpac had enforced the blocking of certain cryptocurrency payments to mitigate the chances of some fraudulent activities.
Binance Australia has currently halted its Australian dollar services, reportedly due to the suspension of support by its payment services provider, Zepto. The exchange released a statement explaining that it was forced to suspend AUD services following a decision by a third-party payments provider. Binance is currently searching for alternative options to resume offering Australian dollar deposits and withdrawals to its users. Nonetheless, users can still utilize credit or debit cards to buy and sell cryptocurrencies on the platform.
Binance’s recent move to eliminate selected trading pairs has raised some doubts among traders and investors. They fear that this could adversely affect the liquidity and trading volume of cryptocurrencies on the platform. However, Binance has assured its users that their funds are protected by the Secure Asset Fund for Users (SAFU) fund. The SAFU fund acts as a safety net for users in case of security breaches or other unforeseen events that could lead to unexpected losses.
UPDATE – We have confirmed with our local payment partner that our users can continue to withdraw AUD via bank transfer until 17:00 June 1, 2023 AEST. Users can still continue to buy and sell crypto via debit and credit card.
— Binance Australia (@Binance_AUS) May 22, 2023
We are working hard to find an alternative provider…
Possible Reasons for this Move
Binance is currently facing some regulatory obstacles in Australia, including an investigation by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) into the company’s operations and compliance with local laws. To comply with regulatory requirements, Binance may have decided to eliminate certain trading pairs as a strategic move.
Binance has also been facing financial hurdles recently, including the struggle to secure new banking partners in the US and UK. Additionally, the exchange’s operations were impacted by the withdrawal of PayID ramping services and license cancellation in Australia. It’s possible that Binance has opted to remove specific trading pairs in an effort to streamline resources and tackle these financial challenges.