Binance began private beta-testing of its new Singapore exchange on September 18th, with plans to expand to Malta, Uganda and Lichtenstein. The announcement was dropped via CEO Changpeng Zhao’s Twitter, in which he claims he “just slipped” and announced the Singapore expansion and date. His choice of words could be implying that he was aware that the news had been leaked and decided to jump the gun and make an impromptu announcement:
I just slipped that we will begin #Binance Singapore fiat exchange live money closed beta testing on Sept 18th, in 3 days. Invitation only first. Exciting! https://t.co/Hzo6jLLkfS
— CZ Binance (@cz_binance) September 15, 2018
Hopefully Thailand will be on the next list of countries due for Binance’s expansion. If Binance decide upon including the Kingdom in their expansions, they must be approved by the SEC for a Crypto Exchange License in order to operate legally. Half the battle of gaining SEC approval is financial, which will not present an obstacle to Binance with their expected 2018 profits of $1B.
Another interesting Tweet from Changpeng Zhao is regarding Binance’s MOU with the Malta Stock Exchange’s fintech and digital asset subsidiary, MSX PLC:
This is about as legit a securities token license support as you can get, thanks to progressive leaders of Malta! https://t.co/tOiwll4mbf
— CZ Binance (@cz_binance) September 16, 2018
This partnership will enable Binance and the Malta Stock Exchange to offer the exchange of fiat via tokens on a blockchain. Further details are yet unavailable and it’s not clear what the implications of this MOU are but PR is more likely to be the goal rather than any project of significance. It’s already known that Binance is moving its HQ to Malta due to conflicts with Japanese crypto regulators, who have licensed similar exchanges but have left Binance’s application in limbo for some time.