Binance will no longer allow the affected Multichain-connected tokens on its platform from the 7th of July, according to an announcement.
Binance has announced it would stop support for withdrawals and deposits for 8 Multichain-bridged tokens from Friday. The crypto exchange said the suspension would last until further notice.
The recent cessation comes following a previous suspension of the affected tokens because of a problem with the Multichain (MULTI) protocol. On May 25, Binance had previously suspended these tokens because transactions via the Multichain protocol were stalling. Many transactions were stuck, leaving users wondering without word from the protocol.
The affected tokens are Harvest Finance (FARM) via BSC, Travala (AVA) via ETH, Alchemy Pay (ACH) via BSC, and Polkastarter (POLS) via BSC. Others are SuperVerse (SUPER) via BSC, Alpaca Finance (ALPACA) via Fantom, Beefy.Finance (BIFI) via Fantom, and Spell Token (SPELL) via Avalanche C-Chain.
In a tweet on May 24, Multichain revealed: “some of the cross-chain routes are unavailable due to force majeure, and the time for service to resume is unknown.” Multichain also said in the tweet that it will automatically credit pending transactions, and compensate all users affected.
Market Reactions to Multichain Problem
At the time, a report stated that Binance was not the only crypto firm to react to Multichain. Blockchain analysis service Lookonchain reported MULTI outflows of $3 million. In addition, a Fantom Foundation wallet address removed $2.4 million (449,740) of liquidity on SushiSwap.
Intelligence firm Arkham Intelligence also confirmed in a tweet that wallets moved around $3 million worth of MULTI tokens to crypto exchange Gate.io. The move scared investors and caused MULTI’s price to plunge 26.5% in 24 hours. Arkham Intelligence’s tweet also referenced a rumor that authorities in Shanghai arrested the Multichain team.
Binance’s announcement states that all mentioned tokens are still available via other networks supported on the exchange. According to data from CoinGecko, MULTI is trading at $3.13 after losing 6.1% in 24 hours and 7.4% in the past week. MULTI’s 24-hour high is $3.34, with a 7-day high at $3.53.
Binance Multichain Suspension a Likely Move to Protect Funds and Avoid Regulatory Attention
The world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by volume, Binance is facing a lot of regulatory stress and is likely acting carefully with Multichain to avoid further problems. In May, Binance announced it would suspend access to some privacy coins in specific European countries to comply with EU regulations. Binance named XVG, DASH, NAV, MOB, and several more, announcing they would no longer be available in Spain, Poland, Italy, and France. However, the exchange opted not to delist these tokens by reclassifying its assessment of privacy coins.
Away from the EU, Binance still has problems in Australia. In February, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) began investigating the exchange over the wrongful closure of some accounts. In April, the exchange asked the Australian ASIC to revoke its derivatives license granted through a local subsidiary. The revocation meant that Binance had to close all existing derivatives positions by April 21. As of yesterday, the ASIC raided Binance’s office in Australia, according to a Bloomberg report.
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