Security

Binance halts dollar deposits following SEC lawsuit

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June 9, 2023

Binance, a cryptocurrency exchange, will stop U.S. dollar deposits following news of the lawsuit from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The exchange also plans to remove withdrawals, due to statements from regulators that they support freezing Binance's assets, according to a report by Reuters.

The exchange's U.S. affiliate said in a tweet that its banking partners will stop dollar withdrawal channels as early as June 13. It also claimed that its move away from deposits is part of an adjustment to a "crypto-only exchange." Binance has struggled to find banking partners after the collapse of Signature Bank in April.

The SEC's lawsuit alleges Binance diverted customer funds, artificially inflated its trading volumes and misled investors about its market surveillance controls. It also claims Binance was offering unregistered securities such as its BNB token, which violated securities law.

The SEC asked a federal court to freeze Binance's U.S. assets. In addition to Binance, the SEC sued Coinbase recently on similar charges.