Hey there. It’s Brady.
Binance is having a rough year. It seems like the reprimands and outright bans just won’t stop. This time, Malaysia’s Securities Commission said the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange is running a “fraudulent scheme” that is damaging the country’s financial system.
It doesn’t look like there’s any wiggle room—Binance was given 14 business days to disable its website and mobile apps, then wind down all operations in Malaysia. It was just a month ago when Thailand’s SEC filed a criminal complaint against Binance for operating a digital asset exchange without the proper paperwork.
Much of this may be rooted in how people interpret cryptocurrencies. Are they like digital money? Are they securities—negotiable financial instruments that hold monetary value? Or do they perform other utilities? Depending on which definition one chooses, these things are regulated differently.
Crypto is now mainstream in Southeast Asia. There is a point somewhere between embracing decentralized innovations and maintaining sovereign control over monetary systems where these things can co-exist. Until more common ground is found, the cryptocurrency industry remains vulnerable to the whims of regulators.
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