Binance to Suspend GBP Transactions in May
- Binance’s fiat banking partner, Skrill Limited, informed the exchange that it will no longer provide GBP on- and off-ramp to its customers starting 22 May.
- The owner of Skrill, Paysafe, said it decided to stop offering its embedded wallet solution to Binance due to the “challenging” regulatory environment in the U.K..
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Cryptocurrency exchange Binance has suspended all British pound (GBP) deposits and withdrawals for new users, and will do the same for all users on 22 May, the company said in an email to its customers on 13 March.
According to the announcement, customers of the largest exchange by trading volume will no longer be able to use GBP as their on- and off-ramp as its U.K. fiat partner Skrill Limited — which was acquired by Paysafe back in 2015 — will no longer support deposits and withdrawals via Faster Payments and card to Binance. The exchange noted that Skrill will no longer provide GBP on- and off-ramp from 22 May, and that pound transfers were suspended for new users on 13 March. The exchange wrote in the email:
“We regret to inform you that our GBP fiat partner, Skrill Limited, has informed us that it will stop offering GBP fiat services, namely deposits and withdrawals via Faster Payments and card, to Binance users. The suspension of GBP deposit services will come into effect on May 22nd, 2023, and any GBP deposits made after that date will be refunded within 7 working days.”
The popular exchange noted that it si currently “working hard” to find an alternative provider to offer GBP deposit and withdrawal services to its users, and that this change will have no impact on its Binance Accounts or products and services. The also explained that the move will affect “less than 1% of Binance users”, and that customers are still able to deposit and withdraw using its other supported fiat currencies.
A spokesperson for Paysafe — the owner of Skrill Limited — said that the decision to stop offering its embedded wallet solution to Binance in the U.K. was due to the complex regulatory environment in the country. The spokesperson said:
“We have concluded that the UK regulatory environment in relation to crypto is too challenging to offer this service at this time and so this is a prudent decision on our part taken in an abundance of caution.”
This is not the first fiat currency the exchange is having trouble with. Back in January, Binance revealed that its banking partner Signature Bank — which is now being shut down — will no longer handle transfers bellow $100,000. The exchange later announced that users from 143 countries will no longer have access to SWIFT USD bank transfers, and on 8 February temporarily suspended all USD bank transfers.
- The popular crypto exchange has decided to sell its business in Russia to CommEX, a crypto exchange business that was officially launched on Tuesday.
- Binance noted that it will fully exit the Russian market, and have no ongoing revenue split or any option to buy back shares in the business.
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- The company said it will be suspending its crypto-backed debit card service in the Middle East on 25 August, and in Latin America by 21 September.
- Although no reason was given for the decision, the company noted that “less than 1% of users” in those regions will be affected by the change.
- A spokesperson said the change was due to the “changing market and user needs”, and that Binance will now be refocusing its resources on its main products and long-term goals.
- Launched in March 2022, Binance Connect helped crypto businesses connect with the traditional finance system, and supported 50 cryptocurrencies and networks such as Visa and Mastercard.