Binance joins lobby group as criticism of exchange escalates

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Binance has joined the Chamber of Digital Commerce, a crypto industry lobby group in the United States, according to a Dec. 20 press release from the exchange. The move comes after Binance was criticized for being allegedly unregulated.

Binances VP of Public Affairs Joanne Kubba expressed hope that the partnership would help bring about clear regulations for the crypto industry in the United States, saying:

As an organization at the heart of the industry’s rapid growth and complex regulatory environment, it’s imperative for Binance to work hand-in-hand with policymakers, regulators, and industry groups like the Chamber . Such work is fundamental to our shared mission to foster the sustainable development of sensible cryptocurrency and blockchain regulations that ultimately ensure user protection.

According to its website, the Chamber of Digital Commerce advocates for a variety of public policies, including tax parity for digital assets, AML/KYC regulations for crypto exchanges, increased regulatory clarity for security tokens, and research on central bank digital currency (CBDC), among others.

Through its Political Action Committee (PAC), the House has made contributions to three candidates for Congress in 2022: Patrick McHenry (R-NC), Blake Masters (R-AZ) and Ron Wyden (D- GOLD).

Related: New House Financial Services Committee Chairman Wants To Delay Crypto Tax Changes

Controversy around Binance

Since the collapse of FTX, calls for crypto regulation have grown, and Binance has come under particular scrutiny for being a high-volume exchange that has no clear geographic location or status. regulatory.

During a congressional hearing on December 14, Kevin OLeary claimed that Binance caused the collapse of FTX and was an unregulated monopoly.

Binances CEO Changpeng Zhao responded to OLearys’ claims in a CNBC interview on Dec. 15, calling them a bunch of nonsensical claims.

On December 12, Reuters published a report claiming that US Justice Department officials were deciding whether or not to indict Binance executives for financial crimes. The executives have not been charged so far, but the report has led to large outflows of stablecoins and other crypto from Binance.

In order to prove that it is trustworthy and creditworthy, Binance has released an audited proof of reserve. However, the reserve evidence has been criticized for not disclosing Binances’ corporate structure or internal controls.

Binance.US, a separate exchange with the same name as the global trading platform, previously joined the Chamber of Digital Commerce in 2020. Its rival, FTX, was also a contributor to US politicians. But this appears to be the first time that international organization Binance has directly joined a US lobby group.

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