Binance publishes Bill of Rights for crypto users in an effort to rehabilitate its reputation

  • Binance has now released the “10 Fundamental Rights for Crypto Users,” for crypto user protection.
  • The Bill is also a show of regulatory responsibility which Binance hopes will place in regulators’ good books.

In an effort to polish its reputation, Binance published on Tuesday what it considers basic rights for crypto users. The “10 Fundamental Rights for Crypto Users” advocates universal access to financial tools including cryptocurrency tools for economic independence. The document also calls for the strict protection of personal data to ensure user privacy.

Binance has also included in these rights what crypto platforms owe to their users. These include implementing KYC to prevent financial crimes and protecting users from bad actors. Crypto platforms should also ensure they have high liquidity in addition to accurate non-deceptive information or advertisements. Furthermore, such platforms should embrace users’ opinions regarding industry evolution.

Binance and crypto market

Notably, this manifesto-like document comes as Binance attempts to set a clean record, especially in the regulatory context. For years, the exchange and its CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ), have been attacked by critics for allegedly enabling financial crime. Allegedly, the pair have been willing to look the other way when it comes to shady practices on its platform.

For these reasons, the exchange has been at loggerheads with regulatory authorities in various regions. These include the UK, manifesto, and Canada’s Ontario provinces. Now, as a show of image re-invention and change in corporate culture, Binance states:

Industry participants have a responsibility to work with regulators and policymakers to shape new standards for crypto assets. Smart regulation encourages innovation and helps keep users safe.

Additionally, the exchange notes that “regulation and innovation are not mutually exclusive,” and “crypto regulation is inevitable.”

Most importantly, the company has been on a hiring spree for former regulators and members of law enforcement. These include prominent IRS agents and investigators from Europol. One of them, Greg Monahan, a former US Treasury criminal investigator, now oversees Binance’s anti-money laundering (AML) efforts. He remarked that since crypto is now a $3 trillion market, “regulators have become a permanent feature of the industry.” Moreover, “privacy and security of the ecosystem” are now prime concerns.

Monahan continues to say that the crypto giant proposed the new bill of rights in part as a revival tactic for the rest of the crypto industry. The bill also signals to regulators that crypto companies are highly considerate of the law.

Binance now hopes authorities will take its latest endeavor seriously. The bill of rights might, however, have little to no impact in regions like Russia and China. This is despite the fact that they harbor millions of crypto users. The duo is infamous for its disregard of basic human rights and rule of law. It also remains to be seen what will become of the investigation Binance launched on the Squid Game rug pool.