Binance and SEC Reach an Agreement to Protect US Customers’ Assets

Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, has agreed to cooperate with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to resolve a lawsuit that threatened to freeze its assets in the US. According to a report by CoinDesk, Binance, Binance.US and the SEC have proposed a deal that would ensure that only Binance.US employees could access customer funds and wallet keys in the short term.

The deal, which still needs approval from the federal judge overseeing the case, comes after the SEC sued Binance, its CEO Changpeng Zhao and Binance.US’s operator last week, accusing them of violating securities laws and operating an unregistered exchange. The SEC also sued Coinbase, another major US exchange, in a similar case.

Under the proposed agreement, Binance.US will make sure that no Binance Holdings officials have access to private keys for its various wallets, hardware wallets or root access to Binance.US’s Amazon Web Services tools, the report said. Binance.US will also create new crypto wallets that the global exchange’s employees cannot access, provide additional information to the SEC, and agree to an expedited discovery schedule.

The agreement is a positive sign for the crypto industry, which has been facing increased scrutiny and regulation from US authorities. Binance.US had previously halted dollar deposits and withdrawals last week and gave customers until June 13 to withdraw their funds, after the SEC asked a court to freeze its assets.

Binance and SEC’s deal is expected to pave the way for a more constructive dialogue between the crypto sector and the regulators, and potentially lead to more clarity and innovation in the space.

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