Binance proceeded to unlock for a limited time the accounts of some users whose funds had been confiscated. This in order to refund your cryptocurrencies after almost seven months of claims. However, what seemed like a happy ending to their story ended up being heartbreaking news for those affected in Colombia, so they contacted CriptoNoticias to report what was happening to them.
According to what they said, some users received an automated email in English from Binance in the early hours of the morning warning that their accounts had been flagged by a third-party compliance tool. That is, compliance with the terms and conditions of regulations. For this reason, they reported that they had made the difficult decision to cancel their service for these users, that is, to deny them access to the platform forever.
Then, Binance notified that, before deactivating their accounts permanently, they gave them time to deposit and withdraw their cryptocurrencies until April 12, 2022. Something that until now they could not do because they were blocked since September 2021.
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Likewise, the company apologized for the inconvenience caused, as well as commenting that its “understanding was highly appreciated”. In addition to this, he warned that in case of any problem with the withdrawal function, notify the customer service team as soon as possible, which they did when they noticed that they had not returned all of their cryptocurrencies.
Users claim that Binance kept their funds without explanation
Jairo Vélez, one of those affected by this case in Colombia, said that Binance left him just $10 of the more than $130,000 he had in bitcoin, USDT and more than a hundred cryptocurrencies. This equates to less than 0.007% of your total funds. This can be seen in a screenshot that he took when entering his wallet after being unlocked.
As proof of his funds, he showed a screenshot of the last transactions he received in USDT and a chat with customer support. In the latter, it is seen that he is informed that he had 1.8 BTC at the time of being blocked at the end of September 2021.
This same situation happened to others affected by the case, although some had a higher reinstatement. Proof of this is Juan Pombo, who estimated that they returned USD 14,000 of USD 143,000 that he had in BTC, ETH, USDT and DOGE.
In fact, at the time of being blocked, your funds were equivalent to a larger amount, as seen in the image below. This is because cryptocurrencies were just trading higher than they are now, so he clarified that they made him lose money. Due to this, he believes that they should not only return what is missing, but also a bonus for damages caused.
Faced with this eventuality, they contacted customer service, before the deadline they were given, to claim that the refund was not complete. But Binance support replied that they have no information about it. At least until the compliance department finishes reviewing your accounts.
This process may take 30 business days after collecting all the documentation they need, they warned. But this time exceeds the maximum period they were given to withdraw the reintegrated funds and proceed to block their accounts permanently, which has generated despair among users.
Others affected did not receive any refund from Binance and were already banned for life
Although none were able to recover all of their cryptocurrencies, there are those affected who did not even get a small percentage like the cases mentioned. According to what they said, in the last days Some they received an email from Binance saying that they had no funds in their wallet, so they proceeded to block their account permanently.
Others commented that they have not received any emails like this so far and their case is still without progress since the beginning of the blockade last year. Taking legal action is the only way left for themthey expressed.
Users continue legal action against Binance
Those affected revealed that plan continue legal action with lawyers to recover all of your cryptocurrencies. This is something that they had already started a long time ago before some got some kind of refund. However, they have not yet had a response in the process as Binance remains silent on the matter.
Therefore, they announced will start a campaign on social networks with influencers to alert other users to keep their cryptocurrencies in self-custody wallets. This is because by leaving money on centralized exchanges, such as Binance, one does not have power over their funds, which is why they can confiscate them.
As reported to CriptoNoticias by lawyer Paula Bermúdez, who was consulted by some affected parties, the exchange is obliged to confiscate the cryptocurrencies of users by a court order from the FIOD. This is the Dutch Tax Information and Investigation Service, which placed a precautionary measure against the platform to investigate assets linked to alleged money laundering activity.
This was communicated to users by Binance after blocking them and confiscating their cryptocurrencies. Likewise, at that time, he gave them an email from the FIOD so that they could communicate with them, disassociating himself from the subject. Despite this, this body never responded to their incessant messages, according to those affected, who are still without explanations on how to proceed.