Binance confirmed in a commitment to the Ontario Securities Commission, or OSC, Canada, dated March 16, that the exchange will cease activities involving residents of the province. Binance will also stop opening new accounts in Ontario and provide fee waivers and refunds to certain users in the region under third-party management, the company said.
The compromise appears to mark the end of a problem that began in June, when Binance announced it would stop servicing Ontario accounts and advised clients to close active positions by the end of the year. The month before Binance’s announcement, the OSC introduced a new prospectus and registration requirements for crypto exchanges.
In December, Binance told investors that it was allowed to continue operating in the province despite not being registered. The OSC quickly refuted that claim. In the pledge filed on Wednesday, Binance acknowledged that his statement was false. The exchange also admitted that it told Ontario investors in a Jan. 1 email that trading and listing were restricted, but continued to allow them to trade as usual. In the compromise, Ontario users had 90 days to close their positions.
The SCO stated that “reserves the right to take action against Binance for any past, present or future violation of Ontario securities law that does not result from the facts described in the commitment.”
The Ontario regulator stands out for its strict stance towards cryptocurrency exchanges. It recently took action against several exchanges operating in the province, including Bitfinex, OKEx, Bybit, KuCoin, and Polo Digital Assets. Since the end of January, exchanges that have received approval to operate in Ontario include Bitbuy, Coinberry, CoinSmart, Fidelity Digital Assets, and Wealthsimple. The OSC also banned the use of Tether (USDT) in August.
Binance will continue to operate in other Canadian provinces. The Alberta Securities Commission is the main securities regulator in the country.
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