Binance Pushes Prime Brokers to Impose Stringent Checks on US Investors

Binance, the world’s largest digital asset trading platform by market volume, seeks to tighten controls to prevent United States investors from accessing its platform.

Sources familiar with the matter told Bloomberg that Binance has instructed prime brokers, including FalconX and Hidden Road, to implement more rigorous checks on their clients. Notably, the exchange has stopped services in multiple nations recently due to regulatory policies and increased scrutiny.

Following the guilty pleas in November, Binance has been adamant about bolstering its compliance measures, demanding additional information from institutional traders. These checks involve inquiries about office locations, employee whereabouts, and founder residency, accompanied by signed attestations to ensure the accuracy of responses.

The catalyst for these stringent measures stems from Binance’s plea deal, which involved admitting to violations of US anti-money laundering and sanctions laws, resulting in a record-breaking $4.3 billion penalty.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) criticized Binance for targeting US customers while disregarding American legislation, alleging that Binance employees actively solicited US VIPs to provide misleading information about their location.

“Binance is fully committed to compliance and has made public how it assesses end users who can access the Binance platform,” the company said. “By making its standard transparent, Binance gives clarity to enterprises who want to access its market-leading liquidity.”

In response to queries regarding the tighter checks, Binance emphasized its commitment to compliance and transparency. The exchange also pointed to its Binance Link Program, designed to offer trading and connectivity services to enterprises.