Alert! Binance Officially Bids Farewell with Russia

Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, has officially announced its decision to discontinue all services related to the Russian Rouble (RUB) as of early February 2024. This strategic move is part of Binance's broader exit plan from the Russian market, prompted by mounting regulatory pressures and the recent agreement to sell its Russia business to CommEx.

As outlined in its official statement, Binance will halt support for RUB trading pairs, including major cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum, commencing from January 31, 2024. Notable pairs to be removed encompass USDT/RUB, BTC/RUB, FDUSD/RUB, BNB/RUB, ETH/RUB, BUSD/RUB, and RUB/RUB.

The off-boarding process from the Russian market is anticipated to span a year. Throughout this transition period, Binance users can seamlessly engage in P2P trading with the Russian Ruble on CommEX without incurring any charges. Moreover, users have the option to withdraw their Russian rubles through Binance's fiat partners before the specified deadline. Alternatively, they can convert their RUB holdings into cryptocurrencies using Binance Convert, following registration and account linkage with CommEX.

This strategic move is a continuation of Binance's phased withdrawal from the Russian market, which commenced in November. The exchange began by delisting major cryptocurrency pairs in RUB, such as ETH, BNB, XRP, ADA, SOL, MATIC, LTC, DOT, and BUSD. Additionally, Binance phased out various other RUB pairs, including ALGO/RUB, ARB/RUB, ARKM/RUB, ARPA/RUB, NEAR/RUB, and WLD/RUB.

Simultaneously, Binance terminated its partnership with Advanced Cash, a payment processor recognized as Advcash. This collaboration, established in 2019, facilitated the transfer of funds between Binance and several Russian banks facing international sanctions.

The decision to sever ties with Advcash aligns with Binance's broader strategy to withdraw from the Russian market amidst concerns that the cryptocurrency exchange may be implicated in evading Western sanctions. This strategic shift gained more definition in September when Binance agreed to sell its Russian operations to local crypto exchange CommEx, marking a gradual handover process that could extend over a year.

However, CommEX has raised inquiries due to its similarities with Binance in terms of user interface and recent establishment. Former Binance CEO, Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, denied ownership of the company acquiring Binance's business in Russia. CZ acknowledged that some former Binance CIS team members may have joined CommEX, considering it a positive development. He also noted intentional design and API similarities between CommEX and Binance to ensure a seamless and familiar user experience for customers.