• Binance announced the discontinuation of its Mastercard-backed crypto card in Latin America and the Middle East.
• The decision comes amid mounting legal challenges faced by the exchange.
• Users can still process returns and complaints until December 20th.
Binance Discontinues Crypto Card Services
Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange, has announced that it will be discontinuing its crypto card services in Latin America and the Middle East as of September 21st (Latin America) and August 25th (Middle East). This follows a partnership between Binance and payments giant Mastercard to launch Binance Card in January which enabled users to fund their purchases and bill payments using their crypto assets.
Legal Challenges Faced by Binance
The decision to terminate the Mastercard-backed crypto card services in Latin America and the Middle East comes as Binance faces mounting regulatory issues. In June, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a lawsuit accusing the exchange and its CEO, Changpeng Zhao, of violating investor protection laws and selling unregistered “crypto asset securities”.
Continued Returns & Complaints Until December 20th
Card-related returns and complaints can still be processed until December 20th, but funds for purchases returned after that date will be deposited into users’ Binance accounts instead of being returned via their cards.
Less Than 1% Of Users Affected
In a statement issued on Tuesday, Binance said that this change affects less than 1% of its users in Latin American countries where the product is no longer offered or supported in the Middle East after August 25th.
Conclusion
Overall, Binance’s termination of its Mastercard-backed crypto card services is an unfortunate consequence of mounting legal challenges faced by them as an organization. While it may cause some inconvenience to those affected – less than 1% of users – they will still have access to returns/complaints processing until December 20th before all deposits are made directly into their accounts thereafter.
