Binance, the biggest cryptocurrency exchange in the world, has announced that it would stop offering crypto card services in the EEA. This comes at a time when the renowned exchange is under intense regulatory pressure in a many of jurisdictions across the globe.
The Visa Debit Card Program for Binance is Being Canceled. This past December Binance said on its blog on October 20 that it will cease offering Visa Debit Card Services in the European Economic Area (EEA), which consists of all 27 EU member states plus Iceland, Lichtenstein, and Norway.
The Seychelles-based exchange has already emailed all concerned clients to inform them of this move. Multiple reliable sources have confirmed that UAB “Finansines passages ‘Contis,'” the issuer of the Binance Visa Debit card, would be discontinuing the service within the next two months.
Binance’s Visa Debit Card is only one of several solutions that facilitates immediate conversion of digital assets held in Binance accounts into local fiat currency for use in paying for goods and services.
The exchange has announced that beginning at midnight (UTC+0) on December 20, 2023, its European Economic Area (EEA) clients will no longer be able to utilize this card service.
Binance has promised that the accounts of European Economic Area residents will not be impacted. The Binance Pay service was also suggested as an alternate method of making purchases from local businesses that are registered with the exchange.
Last but not least, Binance made clear that its recent order applies to all EEA member nations, including the Republic of Ukraine, which has been at war with the Russian Federation since at least February 2022.
To help Ukrainian refugees from the conflict make purchases in European Economic Area (EEA) nations and meet other emergency financial requirements, Binance introduced the Refugee Crypto Card service in April 2022.
However, this service, along with the other card service offered by the exchange in the European Economic Area, will be discontinued.
The news that Binance would no longer accept Visa cards from customers in the European Economic Area (EEA) is seen by many market observers and crypto fans as just the latest blow to the exchange, which is under increasing regulatory scrutiny throughout the globe.
Binance had to stop accepting cards from customers in Latin America and the Middle East after the payment provider Mastercard ended its association with the exchange in August.
In context, in the previous few months, Binance has been refused operating licenses in Austria, the Netherlands, and Germany, and is now under investigation in France and Australia.
The exchange is also engaged in a heated legal fight with the SEC in an effort to vindicate itself from 13 criminal accusations brought by the SEC, which oversees the US securities market.
CoinTelegraph revealed earlier this week that Binance.US, a U.S.-based cryptocurrency exchange, has stopped processing client dollar withdrawals, making it a “crypto-only” platform. After the SEC reportedly “coerced” the exchange’s banking partners into terminating all current business ties in June 2022, the Binance affiliate discontinued dollar deposits.
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