In brief
- UK bank Barclays has stopped customers from sending money to Binance.
- The move comes after the FCA published a consumer warning about a Binance company acquired in the UK.
UK bank Barclays has told customers that they're blocked from sending their funds to crypto exchange Binance in order to "keep your money safe", according to the Financial Times.
“As you’ve made a payment to Binance this year, we wanted to let you know that we’re stopping payments made by credit/debit card to them until further notice. This is to help keep your money safe,” a notification reportedly sent to Barclays customers reads.
The move comes in the aftermath of the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority’s crackdown on Binance. Last month, the FCA issued a consumer warning against Binance Markets Limited, a company acquired by Binance in order to facilitate the launch of a bespoke UK crypto exchange.
The FCA told Decrypt that while it cannot ban Binance, it did what it could to protect consumers by prohibiting Binance Markets Limited from providing “regulated activities” in the UK.
Binance’s compliance woes
The crypto exchange has run into a number of hurdles when it comes to regulatory compliance in recent months.
Per the Financial Times, an executive at a payments company that helped Binance connect to the wider financial market said the crypto exchange “talks a big game on anti-money laundering and know-your-customer” rules, but remained “resistant to throwing human resources at compliance issues.”
The FCA was also concerned about the company’s approach to money laundering rules. An FCA spokesperson told Decrypt that the regulator “obviously has issues with standards in that area.”
The FCA joined an already long list of regulators that have taken a critical stance against Binance in recent months. This includes regulators in Malaysia, Thailand and Japan.
Last week, the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority announced that Binance is not “registered, licensed, regulated or otherwise authorized” to operate as a crypto exchange “from or within” the Cayman Islands.
Binance, on the other hand—which continues to say it has no headquarters—has previously stated that it takes its compliance obligations “very seriously.”