Binance Australia’s Offices Searched by Financial Regulator: Bloomberg
TL;DR Binance Australia's office was searched by the country's financial regulator, the Australian Securities & Investments Commission (ASIC). The investigation is part of its probe into how Binance classified clients as professional wholesale investors. Binance has also been raided in France for money laundering and is facing a lawsuit from U.S. regulators. A spokesperson for ASIC said the investigation is still ongoing.
Binance Australia’s office was searched by the country's financial regulator, the Australian Securities & Investments Commission (ASIC), on Tuesday, according to a report in Bloomberg.
The report, citing anonymous sources, comes after the company’s derivatives license was canceled in April, following an investigation into how it classified clients as professional wholesale investors, as they can get fewer regulatory protections than regular retail customers.
"We are cooperating with local authorities and Binance is focused on meeting local regulatory standards in order to serve our users in Australia in a fully compliant manner,” a Binance Australia spokesperson told CoinDesk in an e-mailed statement.
Binance was raided by the public prosecutor in Paris, France in June for “aggravated money laundering.” The company's U.S. arm and its CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao are the subject of a lawsuit from U.S. regulators that alleges the exchange operated unlawfully and listed unregistered securities exchange.
A spokesperson for ASIC told CoinDesk that its investigation is "ongoing," but that it was "unable to confirm or deny any operational detail such as possible searches."
UPDATE (July 5, 2023, 10:13 UTC): Adds ASIC statement.