Binance’s Market Share Drops amid Regulatory Pressure

The market share of the top cryptocurrency exchange Binance, and its US affiliate, Binance.US, has declined, the latest market data shows. The decline is anticipated to be due to the recent lawsuit filed against the exchange by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

The market share of Binance.US had dropped the most. According to the cryptocurrency data provider, Kaiko, as quoted by Reuters, the market share of the purportedly independent exchange dropped from 22% to 0.9% between April and June.

Regulatory Troubles

Binance.US was dealt a blow when the SEC sought court orders to freeze the assets of the exchange. The regulator told the court in June that a temporary freeze of the exchange’s assets would protect investors from losing their funds. However, the two parties later agreed to a deal that prevented the need to freeze the assets.

Besides that, Binance.US was forced to suspend US dollar deposits in June, citing what it termed as ‘aggressive and intimidating’ tactics by the SEC. Additionally, the company said it was planning to halt US dollar withdrawals after its banking partners withdrew their support.

Binance, the global exchange platform, has similarly witnessed a reduction in market share from 60% at the beginning of the year to 52%. The reduction is tied to the step the exchange took in March to end zero-fee trading for most of the BTC pairs. The zero-fee trading pairs accounted for 60% of all the trading volumes on the platform before most of the pairs were suspended.

Binance’s Declining Spot Trading Volumes

What is also believed to have caused the decline in market share is the drop in the spot trading volumes, which was at the lowest in the second quarter since 2020, the data revealed. The decline is despite the surge in the price of Bitcoin after major asset managers, including BlackRock, sought approval for the spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds.

Meanwhile, FinanceMagnates reported that Binance was facing resentment in Germany a week ago, citing the financial news website, Finance Forward. The exchange’s application for a crypto custody license in the country had not been approved.

On top of that, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) recently searched Binance’s offices concerning the now-closed derivatives business operated by the exchange's Australian affiliate. Binance terminated the service earlier after the regulator cancelled its license.