Germany’s Financial Watchdog Denies Binance Custody License

Binance has hit another roadblock. This time it is in Germany, where the country’s financial watchdog has denied Binance a much-needed custody license, according to an exclusive report by Finance Forward using sources who chose to remain anonymous.

This setback could potentially impact Binance’s operations within the country. However, the reasons behind the decision remain a mystery. Whether the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) issued a formal denial or indicated the intention in ongoing dialogues is still unclear.

A representative from Binance expressed their commitment to working with BaFin’s regulations. “We are confident that we have the right team and measures in place to continue our discussions with regulators in Germany,” the spokesperson stated. Notably, Binance refrained from revealing specific details about their conversations with regulators.

BaFin, sticking to its professional secrecy obligations, didn’t disclose any comments about individual companies.

The recent series of events mirror Binance’s regulatory struggles in Europe. On June 26, it was revealed that Binance retracted its application for regulatory approval in Austria. Binance also abandoned its registration with the Cyprus securities regulator. Furthermore, it voluntarily exited the Netherlands after a failed registration attempt.

The crypto giant faced more challenges as it was compelled to cease operations in Belgium amid accusations from the U.S. securities regulator of running an unregistered trading platform.

Binance claims these setbacks are part of a strategy to streamline its European operations. The company is preparing for the EU’s forthcoming crypto regulation, allowing crypto firms to operate throughout the single market by achieving regulatory approval in one member state.