One of the biggest news in the global crypto community now is Binance’s decision to withdraw applications for digital asset trading in Singapore. Not just that, Binance Asia is completely shifting tracks, focusing more on education and research than on investing. On top of that, Binance will be totally non-functional in Singapore from February 13, 2021. While many thought it marked a big defeat for Binance, the reality is very different.
Instead of investing in their own affiliate Binance.sg, the company chose to invest in an already regulated firm – HGX. According to the CEO of Binance Changpeng Zhao, investments in HGX made their own services redundant. On top of that, Binance has had regulatory troubles with the Monetary Authority of Singapore in the past. Keeping all these factors in mind, it made much more sense for Binance to withdraw their application and focus on HGX instead.
Binance is the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by volume. However, it is now facing competition from big crypto exchanges like Crypto.com and Coinbase. Many felt that the Singapore move was Binance’s way of taking things slow and building from the base. However, it turns out that Binance is already ahead of the curve with its multinational presence. The business model of Binance also seems to be working perfectly in the cryptocurrency industry. Instead of setting up their own exchanges, they are appointing affiliates (like Binance.US) or buying shares of already established exchanges. Whether this model works in the long term or not is subject to debate.
