Thread by @newmoneyreview

#Binance today regained access to the UK's Faster @FasterPayments system, which enables 24/7 real-time sterling payments of up to £1m. Binance is using UK-based electronic money institution Paysafe, for its faster payments access

ft.com/content/40b557…

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According to @joshckoliver of the @FT, Paysafe will have control of anti-money laundering (#AML) and compliance checks for Binance customers. Paysafe says Binance will be responsible for collecting the information Paysafe needs to run those checks.

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Paysafe has its HQ in London but its shares were listed on the NYSE in March last year following a merger with special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Foley Trasimene Acquisition Corp II.

$PSFE shares have fallen nearly 80% since the merger.

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Paysafe has a rating of 1.8/5 (Poor) on UK Trustpilot, with multiple complaints about poor customer service, accounts being blocked for consumer reasons and clients losing access to their funds.

uk.trustpilot.com/review/www.pay…

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It's only six months since the UK financial services regulator @TheFCA issued a consumer warning about Binance, saying Binance Markets Limited is not permitted to undertake any regulated activity in the UK.

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In August, the FCA also published a supervisory notice (dated June 25) in which it said it was incapable of effectively supervising Binance Markets Limited.

fca.org.uk/publication/su…

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Now, according to the FT, the FCA has said that while it had been notified about the Paysafe deal, its “concerns about Binance remain”. The regulator said it had “limited powers to object to arrangements of this kind”.

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Last summer, Binance faced a series of bans from regulators in different countries, as well as exclusion from the EU's Single European Payments Network

SEPA allows real-time payments within the eurozone of up to a billion euros.

newmoneyreview.com/index.php/2021…

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However, Binance announced on 22 January it had rejoined SEPA, also using Paysafe as its intermediary.

binance.com/en/support/ann…

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With today's announcement that it is rejoining the UK's faster payments system, Binance again seems several steps ahead of regulators. It's a cat-and-mouse game it's been playing - successfully - for several years.

newmoneyreview.com/index.php/2021…

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But the dangers for Binance haven't gone away. Yesterday the @WSJ reported that Binance is facing scrutiny from the @SECGov over links between its US exchange and two trading companies owned by Binance's CEO, Changpeng Zhao.

wsj.com/articles/sec-p…

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In the past, #Binance has faced charges of trading against its own customers, of benefiting from the forced liquidation of leveraged trading positions, and of covering up data. Binance faces lawsuits over such allegations.

newmoneyreview.com/index.php/2021…

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Binance's 44-year-old CEO has become one of the richest and most powerful figures in global finance. Bloomberg said in January he has amassed a $96bn fortune from #cryptocurrency, placing him 14th in a list of the world's richest people.

bloomberg.com/news/features/…

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