Two UK Banks Have Stopped Customer Payments to Binance. Here’s Why.

July 8, 2021 / Unchained Daily / Laura Shin

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UK Banks Are Blocking Customers From Binance

On Monday, Barclays announced that its customers would no longer be able to use credit or debit cards to make payments to Binance. The UK-based bank sent a notice saying, “As you’ve made a payment to Binance this year, we wanted to let you know that we’re stopping payments made by credit/debit card to them until further notice. This is to help keep your money safe.”

On Thursday, Spanish banking giant Banco Santander announced a similar move by blocking payments to Binance for UK customers. A spokesperson explained, “In recent months we have seen a large increase in UK customers becoming the victims of cryptocurrency fraud…Keeping our customers safe is a top priority.”

Binance has also temporarily suspended payments from the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA), the EU’s payment network, according to a report from the Financial Times. Binance described the suspension as “beyond our control” and that it is “working hard to find a solution with our partners.” The company expects to have SEPA payments live within seven days. For now, customers in 36 countries cannot use the system to deposit cash onto Binance (withdrawals are still allowed).

Binance’s regulatory struggles come after a June announcement from the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) that said Binance should not be allowed to operate within the UK.

According to CNBC, Binance’s struggles have boosted rival exchanges. Bitstamp, for example, has seen its customer base grow 138% since the FCA’s notice. CNBC also notes that Kraken and Gemini have seen an uptick in UK signups over the past few weeks.

With compliance appearing to be a significant issue, Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao posted a blog outlining Binance’s plan for regulation and development as the crypto industry grows. Zhao expressed plans to grow Binance’s international compliance team, expand compliance partnerships with companies like CiperTrace, and localize business operations. Coming through on the promise to localize, Binance announced the hire of Jonathan Farnell as the Director of Compliance of its European Compliance Team.

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