Leading crypto exchange Binance has suspended Australian Dollar (AUD) deposit and withdrawals via bank transfer. This is coming in the midst of issues with the exchange’s banking partner responsible for processing such transactions.
The partner has given Binance users in Australia up to 17:00 June 1, 2023, AEST to withdraw their funds. The payment provider, PayID AUD had two weeks ago, announced it was halting support for Binance’s AUD deposit and withdrawals.
In an announcement by Binance Australia on Twitter today, the exchange said it will not be able to process AUD deposits and withdrawals after 1 June.
“We regret to inform you that AUD deposits and withdrawals by bank transfer are no longer available to Binance users in Australia. Binance has ceased all AUD trading pairs as of June 1. In order to facilitate withdrawals and trading activities after June 1, you can convert AUD balances to USDT.”
Luckily, use of credit and debit cards as well as peer-to-peer trading is still available and is not affected. Binance is already working on finding a replacement for PayID, but in the mean time, deposit by bank transfer will halt at any moment.
“You can still buy and sell crypto using credit or debit card, and our Binance P2P marketplace will also continue to operate as usual. We understand from our third-party payment service provider that Bank Transfer withdrawals will also be impacted, and we will advise users on [a] timeline when this is confirmed,” Binance added.
The exchange however assures that customers funds are safe with “the Secure Asset Fund for Users (SAFU), an insurance fund that offers protection to Binance users and their funds in the event of extreme situations.”
Crypto Payment Processors becoming Scarce
Binance is facing issues with a payment processor in Australia for the first time, but this is just one of many cases in recent times. In the US for example, many leading crypto exchanges including OKX had to suspend USD deposits following a series of bank collapses.
Although this is perceived as an attempt to frustrate the crypto industry in the US, Australia doesn’t seem to be working against crypto. If anything, it is working to develop the industry by putting in place adequate regulation that makes the environment conducive for crypto companies to thrive.
Crypto users in Australia will now have to make do with other available options of trading crypto on Binance, or consider using other exchanges until a suitable replacement is found.
Binance Not Leaving Australia
Binance recently moved out of Canada, the home country of it founder and CEO, Changepeng Zhao. This decision was made due to the harsh new rules regulators in Canada came up with for crypto companies. Bybit has followed in the same path by announcing its movement out of Canada as well.
However, Binance isn’t considering moving out of Australia since regulations in the country are quite friendly, and more recent developments seek to turn it into a crypto hub. This will likely attract more crypto exchanges, and so there’s no reason for Binance to leave.
The same cannot be said of the US, where even indigenous exchanges like Gemini and Coinbase are either moving out, or increasing their presence outside the country due to bad regulatory approach. Places like Dubai and Australia will be the next destination for them in the near future.
