The problems with Binance, after the Financial Conduct Authority clamped down on the exchange in the UK, continue to pile up. Indeed, strategic payment partners are starting to abandon it, making it significantly more difficult for users of the platform to withdraw their funds for fear of having them seized. Nevertheless, two payment service giants are showing their support for the exchange platform, despite a potential ban on operating in Italy.
VISA and Mastercard: steadfast partners
VISA and Mastercard have both stated that they are aware of the regulatory issues currently facing Binance, and are closely monitoring the situation. For the moment, it is the UK that has banned Binance from operating in its territory without a license. But soon, Canada, Japan, Thailand and now Italy may join its ranks.
Until the situation becomes clearer, VISA and Mastercard have not blocked the use of their cards on Binance. In addition to deposits and withdrawals, Binance offers a VISA debit card. This allows users to pay for purchases from their Binance balance and receive rewards in NBB.
Does Binance offer its services without authorization?
The Italian financial markets regulator, Commsione Nazionale per le Societa e la Borsa (Consob), said in a July 15 press release that Binance and its subsidiaries were not authorized to operate in Italy:
“Consob warns investors that Binance Group companies are not authorized to provide investment services and activities in Italy, including through the website www.binance.com, whose sections entitled ‘Derivatives’ and ‘Stock Tokens’, relating to crypto-asset related instruments, were previously also written in Italian.”
Italy thus joins the ranks of countries that have issued a public warning regarding Binance. This latest warning comes as Binance faces a class action lawsuit from a group of investors. The lawsuit, led by the Italian-based law firm Lexia Avvocati, was aimed at repairing the damage caused by trading on Binance. Specifically, the plaintiffs allege that the company violated its own rules regarding derivatives.
Binance is not the only exchange offering its services in the jurisdictions in question. Kraken and especially FTX offer exactly the same services to European and Asian users as Binance. Kraken does not just offer security tokens and FTX does not have a website translated into Italian or French. However, both exchanges also operate without authorization in these territories.
