- Binance has taken out full page newspaper adverts proclaiming a set of 10 “fundamental rights for crypto users”
- The list is aimed at users, regulators, and crypto exchanges
- Binance’s lecturing tone is rich considering its reputation as a shady operator
Binance has taken out full page adverts, including in the pages of some of its most ardent critics, proclaiming what it calls “10 fundamental rights for crypto users”. The list, which appeared in anti-crypto mainstream media outlets such as the Financial Times, came with the attention grabbing headline ‘Crypto Is Evil’ and outlined what Binance says are key rights that all crypto users should be able to enjoy, regardless of their jurisdiction, including the freedom to engage with cryptocurrency platforms, protection of personal information, and the expectation that industry participants should work with regulatory bodies to meet the criteria needed to operate legally.
The future of crypto needs to be user-focused. And we’re doing everything we can to make that happen. pic.twitter.com/LGGoYSL4ZJ
— Binance (@binance) November 16, 2021
Binance Lectures Regulators and Other Exchanges
Binance’s fundamental rights are partly aimed at governments and partly aimed at cryptocurrency operators and come at a time when the company is itself seeking to become a more legitimate legal entity. Indeed, many of its rights apply to itself as much as any other exchange, an irony that was not lost in some respondents.
Some of the more eye-opening claims that Binance makes is that “industry participants have a responsibility to work with regulators and policymakers to shape new standards for crypto assets”, which more than one Twitter user took to mean that crypto companies should take the first step. In fact there is no suggestion that this is Binance’s intention, merely suggesting that they should not seek to skirt regulations if they want the crypto space to grow. As Coinbase has already experienced, taking the initiative doesn’t always lead to fruitful results.
Noble Sentiment From an Inopportune Source
Binance also states that all exchanges are obliged to comply with all KYC/AML restrictions in their respective countries, something that Binance has only done itself after being forced to do so by regulatory pressure, adding that the same should apply to marketplaces offering derivative trading tools.
While the sentiment is noble, the fact that Binance of all companies, which has come to be seen by mainstream media as the worst offender in the crypto Wild West, is the one now wagging the finger at other crypto establishments and telling them to get in line won’t go down well inside or outside crypto.
