Binance halts trading in dollars on its U.S. exchange

The American branch of Binance, the giant cryptocurrency exchange, will no longer allow customers to trade on its platform using U.S. dollars after its banking partners cut the firm off in response to a crackdown by federal regulators.

The move announced late Thursday is a major blow to Binance.US, the American arm of the world’s largest crypto exchange. One of the main functions of an exchange is allowing users to convert their traditional money into digital currencies like bitcoin or ether. Binance will no longer be able to offer that service in the United States.

In a message to customers, Binance. US said it was “taking necessary actions as we transition to a crypto-only exchange.” In recent days, the company said, its banking partners have signaled they will no longer facilitate the movement of dollars on and off Binance.US’ platform.

The announcement comes after the

Securities and Exchange Commission sued Binance on Monday, accusing the firm and its CEO, Changpeng Zhao, of mishandling customer funds and lying to regulators. In a separate filing, the SEC asked a federal judge in Washington to freeze assets related to U.S.based customers of Binance, citing “the defendants’ years of violative conduct.”

The crypto industry has been under intense pressure from federal regulators since November, when the collapse of the FTX exchange set off an industrywide crisis. The day after it sued Binance, the SEC filed a separate case against Coinbase, the largest American crypto exchange. Some crypto companies have vowed to fight the crackdown, while others are making plans to leave the United States entirely.

In its message to customers Thursday, Binance.US said it was facing “extremely aggressive and intimidating tactics” from the SEC, but the company also tried to assure customers their savings were “safe, secure, and available.”