Crypto exchange WazirX parent Binance in a jam

Cryto currency exchange WazirX, which is facing troubles over Fema violations, has more worries in store. Its parent Binance has been asked to stop all regulated activities in Britain.

The UK’s financial watchdog, the Financial Conduct Authority, has also imposed stringent requirements on one of the world’s biggest crypto currency exchanges.

“Binance Markets Limited is not permitted to undertake any regulated activity in the UK… no other entity in the Binance Group holds any form of UK authorisation, registration or licence to conduct regulated activity in the UK,” FCA was quoted by a Reuters report.

Binance Markets is not approved under the FCA’s crypto currency registration regime. The entity had applied to become a registered crypto currency company with the regulator, but pulled that application last month “following intensive engagement from the FCA”.

The FCA reviews controls and practices of such exchanges to prevent money laundering and the financing of terrorism.

Binance is one of the most important operators in the fast-emerging crypto market, offering a wide range of services to customers around the world, including trading in dozens of digital coins, futures, options, stock tokens, as well as savings accounts and lending. It recorded crypto trading volumes equivalent to $1.5 trillion last month.

Japan’s Financial Services Agency had warned last week that Binance was conducting unauthorised trade in crypto currencies with Japanese citizens. Germany’s financial watchdog too has warned investors in April that Binance had probably violated securities rules over its launch of trading in stock tokens.

A troubled parent could not be of much help to WazirX, which had received a show-cause notice from Enforcement Directorate a few days back for foreign exchange management violations.

“ED has issued show cause notice to WazirX crypto-currency exchange for contravention of Fema, 1999 for transactions involving cryptocurrencies worth Rs 2,790. 74 crore,” the ED had said in a tweet.

WazirX allows users to trade in crypto currencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum and others.