Binance Chain Launches, Firm Expects to Execute Mainnet Swap on April 23

Binance has launched its mainnet Binance Chain and expects to execute the swap of its native token Binance Coin (BNB) on April 23, according to an announcement on April 18.

The major crypto exchange first revealed its plans to launch its own blockchain in December 2018, intending to build a basis for issuing new cryptocurrencies and initial coin offering tokens.

According to the announcement, Binance is producing blocks with consensus from the genesis block as of today, with its native coin BNB planned to be issued in the genesis block.

Binance Chain Explorer and Web Wallet will be available to selected partners in beta testing mode and are expected to be opened to public access “around April 23, 2019,” the announcement notes.

Along with the launch of Binance Chain, the exchange provided details for the conversion of ERC-20 BNB tokens into native Binance Chain-based BNB (BEP2) coins. As such, Binance emphasized it will not support the withdrawal of ERC-20 BNB tokens after April 23.

Specifically, Binance will be releasing more BEP2 coins as more users convert their ERC-20 BNB to its native BEP2 BNB, while the proportional amounts of ERC20 BNB will be burned while “keeping the total supply across both networks constant.” The exchange will not list any initial trading pairs until the conversion of the first batch of BNB has occurred, the statement reads.

Binance is currently the third largest crypto exchange by adjusted daily trading volume. As recently reported, Binance’s Q1 2019 profits surged 66% compared to the previous quarter.

According to another report, Binance saw $78 million in Q1 profits due to a massive growth in its over-the-counter trading platform.

Recently, Binance’s charity arm launched a crypto donation channel to support the reconstruction of the Notre Dame cathedral.