.@binance just celebrated the incredible milestone of 7 years, and it's worth a big SIIIMMM! Here’s to many more successes together as a team. #BinanceTurns7 pic.twitter.com/TwPHE39qhm
— Cristiano Ronaldo (@Cristiano) July 26, 2024
Currently worth $12 billion in revenue, Binance Holdings Ltd., branded Binance, is a global company that operates the largest cryptocurrency exchange in terms of daily trading volume of cryptocurrencies. Binance was founded in 2017 by Changpeng Zhao, a developer who had previously created high-frequency trading software. Binance was initially based in China, then moved to Japan shortly before the Chinese government restricted cryptocurrency companies. Binance subsequently left Japan for Malta and currently has no official company headquarters.
Binance has been the subject of lawsuits and challenges from regulatory authorities throughout its history. As a result, Binance has been banned from operating or ordered to cease operations in some countries, and has been issued fines. It has been alleged that Binance could be used as a funding mechanism for terrorist groups. In November 2023, the company pleaded guilty in a U.S. federal court to money laundering, unlicensed money transmitting, and sanctions violations. In 2021, Binance was put under investigation by both the United States Department of Justice and Internal Revenue Service on allegations of money laundering and tax offenses. The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority ordered Binance to stop all regulated activity in the United Kingdom in June 2021.
In June 2023, Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission recently deemed Binance’s activities in the country as “illegal.” It issued a declaration stating that Binance Nigeria Limited, a subsidiary of Binance, was operating unlawfully in the country. The regulator specifically instructed Binance to cease all its activities within Nigeria.
On 28 February 2024, two Binance executives, Nadeem Anjarwalla and Tigran Gambaryan, were detained by Nigeria’s government on allegations of illegal operations and forex manipulation.
Anjarwalla escaped custody in March. The Nigerian government subsequently filed a criminal charge against Binance for tax evasion. Amid regulatory issues in Nigeria, Binance disabled its Naira services on 8 March 2024. In May, Binance’s CEO, Richard Teng, claimed that officials sought a bribe of cryptocurrency to resolve the issues, but the country’s House of Representatives denied the allegations, stating that Binance’s actions were an attempt to divert attention from serious criminal allegations against the company.
