- The exchange is accused of failing to comply with KYC conditions
- The company has also been accused of violating French law
The cryptocurrency exchange Binance is under investigation in France. The Financial Investigative Service is conducting investigations into “acts of illegal exercise of the service provider function on digital networks”. The exchange is also accused of money laundering.
Binance is suspected of failing to comply with KYC procedures, among other things.. This includes all the checks that financial services must conduct to ensure that platforms are not used for money laundering.
In addition, the exchange is suspected of violating French law, which regulates the activities of cryptocurrency platforms.. The law was passed in 2019 and provides for digital service provider status for a variety of activities. But Binance, which began operations in France in 2020, is suspected of buying advertising to promote its activities in the country before it was properly registered with the AMF in May 2022.
A spokesperson for Binance commented on the situation:
“In France all financial institutions must comply with legal requirements, which include inspection visits from regulators. Recently our company was also visited by the competent authorities. As always, we cooperated fully with them. This visit involved a search of our premises, during which documents and computer items were collected. These materials are now subject to detailed scrutiny by French law enforcement authorities.”
Binance also said it respects local law and explained that it cannot comment on the investigation by regulators or other forces, but that its customer information is kept secure.
It was also revealed this morning that Binance is leaving the Netherlands.. The reasons are unknown.