Thread by @DefiIgnas

1/15 Binance launched in 2017 and quickly became the largest crypto exchange.

But now it's facing the biggest challenge yet.

Here's a look at its rise to the top, current challenges, and what the future may hold: 🧵

2/15 In the grand scheme of things Binance is still young.

The exchange launched in July 2017, just 11 days after #BNB ICO.

Out of 200M of the total BNB allocation, 50% were sold to the public for $0.15, raising $15M in total.

That's 186,566% ROI.

3/15 While Binance is 6 years old, CZ is celebrating 10-year anniversary of joining crypto.

CZ began crypto career in 2013 at blockchain[.]info

In 2014 he joined OKCoin as CTO, but left 8 months later citing 'a difference of direction.'

4/15 Binance rise to the top was fast.

It was top 3 exchange by trading volume in less than 5 months after the launch.

Then 3 months later, it became No 1.

Binance generated $200M profit in its second quarter of existence.

And CZ's net worth grew to as much as $2B.

5/15 Binance's focus on users and innovation were crucial to its success:

• Listed in demand tokens fast
• Had minimal KYC
• Great UI
• Offered low trading fees and discount for BNB holders
• Prioritized customer support

Even now Binance has the best CS in crypto IMHO.

6/15 Don't take it from me.

During an AMA with CZ on 'What Makes Binance Successful' @cz_binance gave examples on serving customer needs.

For example, Binance was the 1st exchange to help users retrieve non-supported tokens they sent by mistake.

7/15 Fast forward to today, Binance is still the leader by almost any metric you pick.

Compare Binance vs 2nd place:

• 24h spot volume: $10b vs Coinbase $1.3b
• Derivatives: $53b vs OKX $18b
• Global web traffic: #628 vs Coinbase #1,846

8/15 Luckily, CZ maintains a friendly tone towards competition.

During one of his AMAs, he said he doesn't see other exchanges as competitors.

If Binance needs to grow, then "we need to grow the industry instead of competing."

And his priority is to earn trust. 🤞

9/15 Binance has continued to evolve amidst increasing strict global crypto regulations.

In 2019, Binance launched BinanceUS to comply with U.S. regulations and now holds 14+ global licenses.

This jurisdiction diversification makes it more resilient than Coinbase or other CEXs.

https://twitter.com/cz_binance/status/1559143843982987265

10/15 And Binance is not limiting itself to the CEX business.

"DeFi is the end game," CZ said during an AMA last year.

He also added, "We're technology agnostic. We're not trying to centralize everything."

"If you're good enough to use a decentralized exchange, go for it."

11/15 These are not empty words. Binance is well-positioned in #DeFi.

In 2018, Binance acquired Trust Wallet for decentralized asset storage.

In 2020, Binance launched the BNB Chain and invested more than $1 billion in the ecosystem.

BNB Chain is only behind Ethereum in TVL.

12/15 Binance's journey hasn't always been smooth sailing.

In late 2019, Binance launched BUSD, reaching a $22B market cap.

But, this year, US regulatory pressure forced Paxos (the issuer of BUSD) to halt BUSD minting.

BUSD's market cap has been falling since then.

13/15 Currently, Binance and CZ himself are facing its biggest battle yet.

The SEC has sued Binance for alleged violations of federal securities laws, citing deception, conflicts of interest, non-disclosure, and evasion of law.

https://twitter.com/SECGov/status/1665779371108335618

14/15 I will finish by CZ's quote after market crashed 2018.

It is even more relevant today.

'No need to worry. Some negative news often turn out to be positive in the long term.

New (often better) opportunities always emerge during times of change.'

https://twitter.com/cz_binance/status/977003379435085825

15/15 We've now reached the 'And then they fight you' stage.

Btw, I first shared this Binance story 7 months ago, but recent events prompted an update!

Follow me @DefiIgnas for more.

Like/Retweet the first tweet below if you can:

https://twitter.com/DefiIgnas/status/1666274367523913728