Binance recently came into the news again, but this time it’s because the US SEC is investigating its original BNB token ‘ERC-20’ for non-registration in 2017.
Binance is today the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange platform by volume, but back when it launched its ERC-20 based Binance Coin (BNB) initial coin offering (ICO) between June 26, 2017 and July 3, 2017, it had not registered this sale with the US’ Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
This ICO sale in 2017 had 100,000,000 BNB tokens, and the price was set at 1 Ethereum for 2,700 BNB tokens or 1 Bitcoin for 20,000 BNB.
Apart from this, Binance is now also in the news for investing an undisclosed amount in PancakeSwap, the largest decentralised exchange (DEX) built on the BNB Smart Chain with over 400,000 users. This caused PancakeSwap’s native token CAKE price to jump by over 10 per cent in early morning trade.
Recently, Binance also became the title sponsor of a crypto awareness program in Africa. The program is called Binance Blockchain and Cryptocurrency Awareness Tour (BCAT) Africa, 2022, and it aims to spread awareness about crypto and Blockchain in Nigeria, Uganda, Cameroon, and other nations in Africa.
According to sources privy to Bloomberg, the US SEC is now investigating whether Binance should have registered their ICO launch during 2017 with them or not.
A spokesperson for Binance told Coindesk, “As the industry has grown at a rapid pace, we have been working very diligently to educate and assist law enforcement and regulators in the US and internationally, while also adhering to new guidelines. We will continue to meet all requirements set by the regulators.”
In 2019, Binance decided to disband the Ethereum Blockchain which hosted its tokens, in favour of its own Blockchain called the Binance Smart Chain.
The original Binance token was based on the ERC 20 Blockchain. ERC 20 refers to a scripting standard used with the Ethereum (ETH) Blockchain. This technical standard dictates a number of rules and actions that an Ethereum token or smart contract must follow.
SEC Chairman Jay Clayton had said in 2017 that “a number of concerns had been raised regarding the cryptocurrency and ICO markets, including that, as they are currently operating, there is substantially less investor protection than in our traditional securities markets, with correspondingly greater opportunities for fraud and manipulation.” Investors should understand that to date no initial coin offerings have been registered with the SEC. If any person today tells you otherwise, be especially wary, he had said.
As of 12.38 pm on June 7, Binance coin (BNB) was down by 8.84 per cent at $282.94, as per Coinmarketcap data.
“Binance Coin (BNB) has been on a downtrend since the last couple of days, as the US SEC launched an investigation against Binance’s native token. The hourly chart for BNB has broken below the triangle pattern. An immediate support for Binance coin is expected at the $221 level,” said WazirX Trade Desk, according to a report in Livemint.