BREAKING: Binance suspends euro bank transfers amid regulatory heat

Published at: July 6, 2021

Regulatory constraints facing Binance have forced the popular cryptocurrency exchange to temporarily halt bank transfers denominated in euros, according to an email sent to its customers on Tuesday. 

Specifically, euro deposits via the Single Europe Payments Area, or SEPA, have been put on hold indefinitely due to circumstances beyond the exchange’s control, Binance said in the email:

“Due to events beyond our control, we are temporarily suspending EUR deposits via SEPA Bank Transfers from 8 am UTC on July 7, 2021.”

Although Binance didn't specify the reason for temporarily halting SEPA transfers, the decision likely stems from the onslaught of regulatory action taken against the firm. 

The most recent decision came a day after British financial giant Barclays announced it would no longer facilitate customer payments to Binance after financial regulators warned users that the exchange was operating in the United Kingdom without proper licensing. In a follow-up with Cointelegraph, a Binance spokesperson said the exchange was disappointed by Barclays’ ”unilateral action” to block customer payments, namely:

“We are disappointed that Barclays appears to have taken unilateral action based on what appears to be an inaccurate understanding of events."

Faced with growing regulatory scrutiny in the United Kingdom, Binance said last month that customers will no longer be able to use the popular Faster Payments on-ramp to withdraw British pounds from the exchange.

Related: Binance faces regulatory upheaval as lawmakers target ‘global’ exchanges

Despite facing backlash from the U.K., Japan, Canada and even the United States, Binance remains, by far, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the world. On Tuesday, the exchange processed over $15.8 billion worth of transactions, according to industry data. By comparison, the second-largest exchange, publicly-traded Coinbase, processed more than $2.2 billion in trades. 

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