Binance Refutes Claims of Trading Against its Users; Client Experience is of “Utmost Importance”

Leading cryptocurrency exchange Binance pushed back against the allegation of market manipulation in response to an alleged ex-employee making such claims on Twitter. “Binance has never traded against our users nor manipulated the market, and we never will,” said the exchange. Binance claims to place “utmost importance” on its client experience and trading integrity, saying it reserves the right to take legal action against such people to protect its interests. Also, it “welcomes responsible whistle-blowing,” said Binance. According to the exchange, as the cryptocurrency industry gets more regulated, it expects fewer “FUD-peddlers and individuals with malicious intent.” The pseudonymous Twitter user, who went by RealFulltimeApe and claimed to be a former “big data engineer” at the exchange, alleged that Binance “purposely pumps/dumps the price” and said it would be “providing proof soon.” Binance said the Twitter account didn’t belong to its former employee; instead, it is an impersonator. The Twitter account has since been deleted and doesn’t exist anymore. This week, as we reported, Binance Singapore, the local affiliate of the exchange, hired former Singapore Exchange Ltd. executive Richard Teng as its CEO. The announcement comes as Binance continues to face scrutiny worldwide and tries to be proactive to be more compliance-oriented and seek local licenses. The exchange has also been bolstering efforts against money laundering and has implemented stricter background checks on customers with immediate effect. Binance users are now required to complete a verification process to access its products and services, and those who haven’t done full KYC will only be able to withdraw funds, cancel orders, and close positions. FTX has reportedly also introduced mandatory KYC (know-your-customer) for everyone to be regulatory compliant.