Binance Finds Way to Serve Belgian Users After Cease Order

Cryptocurrency exchange Binance said it continues to provide services to residents of Belgium through its Polish entity. The announcement comes two months after the crypto trading company was ordered by the Belgian financial regulator to cease all crypto services in the country.

Binance Offers Belgian Clients to Trade on Its Polish Platform

Belgian customers of Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange, are currently served by its Polish platform. In a blog post published Monday, the crypto trading company pointed out that the move allows it abide by applicable regulations. It stated:

We are pleased to announce that Binance Poland sp. z o.o. is now the entity that provides Binance services for Belgian residents. By doing this, Binance ensures that it complies with its regulatory obligations and can continue to provide services to Belgian users.

The change comes after in June Belgium’s Financial Services and Markets Authority (FSMA) ordered Binance to “cease immediately all offers of virtual currency services” in the EU nation, accusing it of providing exchange and custody wallet services from countries that are not members of the European Economic Area (EEA).

The FSMA also demanded from Binance to return to Belgian clients all cryptographic keys and crypto assets that it holds for their account, or transfer them to entities governed and authorized by the law of an EEA member state in order to continue to carry out the said activities.

Binance emphasized it will be able to continue serving Belgian users in compliance with local regulatory requirements. “Binance Poland is able to provide crypto exchange and custodian services in line with its registration as a virtual assets service provider (VASP) in Poland,” the exchange noted.

To keep trading on Binance, Belgians will have to accept the Terms of Use of Binance Poland for Belgian users, the company explained, adding: “We may also ask users to resubmit some of the required know-your-customer (KYC) documentation in order to comply with Polish regulatory requirements.”

Binance has been dealing with increased pressure from financial authorities around the world, including lawsuits from the securities and commodities regulators in the U.S. In Europe, Binance withdrew its license applications or canceled its registrations in several countries, including the Netherlands, Germany, Cyprus, and the U.K., indicating it wants to focus on fewer regulated entities on the Old Continent.

In late July, the crypto giant announced it’s restoring full services for its Japanese users on a new platform. In November 2022, acquired the Japan-registered Sakura Exchange Bitcoin (SEBC) after receiving warnings from Japanese regulators that it was operating without the necessary authorization.

Do you think Binance will adopt a similar approach regarding other European markets where it faces regulatory challenges? Share your thoughts on the subject in the comments section below.