March 10, 2022
By Priyanka Shetty
The Financial Conduct Authority has said it is concerned about the deal that lets Binance access the UK payments network. The news comes just months after the regulator warned the exchange poses a “significant risk” to consumers and ordered the company to stop all regulated activities in Britain.
Here’s what we know:
- A digital assets financial services company Eqonex recently announced that it has entered into a strategic partnership with Bifinity, a payments technology company that is part of the wider Binance Group and the official fiat-to-crypto payments provider for Binance. Bifinity, also offers payments processing through Checkout.com and Paysafe.
- Eqonex which owns FCA-regulated crypto custody firm Digivault has access to it and now Binance also has the access to the same due to its partnership with Eqonex. The U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), which also oversees cryptocurrencies, is not happy with Binance’s new partnership.
- FCA feels that the main Binance Group, which has no formal headquarters and has only recently begun a proactive regulatory compliance campaign, “is not capable of being effectively supervised”. The FCA noted that it “can take steps to suspend or cancel the registration of a crypto asset business if it is not satisfied the firm or its beneficial owner is fit and proper.”
- This isn’t the first partnership of Binance that has worried FCA. Back in February, FCA was concerned about Binance’s partnership with Paysafe too. However, FCA then said it had “limited powers to object to arrangements of such kind”. Even though FCA was notified about the Paysafe deal, its “concerns about Binance remain” it said. FCA also added, “Paysafe is aware of our concerns and is subject to close ongoing supervision consistent with our approach for firms of its size. We cannot comment further”.
About the author
Priyanka Shetty is freelance writer for Blockchain Asset Review
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