Despite the obstacles Binance faced last year, the exchange has continued to make its presence known.
Binance, the world’s leading digital asset exchange, has shown resilience and growth following its recent settlement with US regulators. The deal, which addressed allegations of money laundering and sanctions evasion, marked a pivotal moment for Binance.
As it may be recalled, billionaire Changpeng Zhao and leading cryptocurrency exchange Binance pleaded guilty to federal charges last November. As part of a coordinated settlement with the US government, Binance agreed to pay more than $4 billion in fines and other sanctions. Zhao, one of the most powerful figures in the crypto space, resigned from his position as CEO of the exchange he founded and agreed to pay $200 million in fines.
Since November 21, when the deal was reached, Binance has seen an increase in net inflows, amounting to approximately $4.6 billion. This data, revealed in a Satoshi Club post on X, shows the platform’s resilience amid these challenges:
“Despite recent legal challenges and leadership changes, Binance has seen net inflows of $4.6 billion since its November settlement with US agencies. In January alone, it attracted $3.5 billion, marking its strongest month since November 2022.”
Binance Inflow Resurgence After Deal
January 2023 emerged as a particularly prosperous month for Binance, with net inflows of $3.5 billion. This figure surpasses any full monthly inflow since November 2022 and marks a substantial rebound from the myriad challenges the exchange faced towards the end of last year.
These challenges were significant as these included notable fines imposed by a US court on Binance and its CEO, Changpeng Zhao (CZ), on charges related to alleged money laundering operations initiated by the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
After former CEO Changpeng Zhao resigned and the exchange agreed to a substantial $4 billion fine with US regulators, the exchange experienced an exit. significant amount of more than a billion dollars in a single day.
Weekly inflows subsequently struggled to surpass $800 million, culminating in a net outflow of -$1.63 billion in November, according to DeFillama data.
However, in December a change began and the stock market’s weekly inflows consistently exceeded $1 billion per week, totaling more than $3 billion per month. This upward trend has continued throughout the current month, with inflows approaching $4 billion, indicating a strong recovery for the leading crypto exchange.
BNB Global Expansion and Resilience
Despite the obstacles Binance faced last year, the exchange has continued to make its presence known. The exchange has recently expanded its global presence with the launch of Gulf Binance in Thailand, a joint venture with Gulf Innova. This move aims to serve the Thai market by offering a platform to trade digital assets with local currency pairs.
The exchange’s native token, BNB, has also shown resilience. After a drop below $230 in November, BNB has risen steadily, trading above $300 at the time of writing. This upward trajectory of BNB, with trading volume exceeding $1 billion, reflects the exchange’s recovery and growth trajectory.
Additionally, Binance continues to lead the cryptocurrency exchange market, as evidenced by data from Coinmarketcap. With 24-hour trading volume exceeding $14 billion, Binance comfortably surpasses rivals such as Coinbase and Kraken, which recorded $2.7 billion and $999 million in trading volume in the past day.
According to CryptoPredictions, the BNB price for today (01/20/2024) is forecast to be in the price range of $262,337 – $385,789. BNB price is expected to end at $308,631 today.
By Leonardo Perez
