Binance to shut down crypto derivatives for Australian customers in December, in a bow to regulators

• Binance said Tuesday it will close down its futures, options and leveraged token products in Australia.
• Existing customers have 90 days from Friday to cut or exit their positions, the crypto exchange said.
• It stopped offering derivatives to new customers in August, as it works to comply with regulations.
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Binance is shutting down crypto derivative products for existing customers in Australia by the end of the year, the latest bid by the exchange to appease regulators.

From Friday, those users will have 90 days to cut or exit their positions in futures, options and leveraged products on Binance’s platform, the company said Tuesday.

They won’t be able to manually cut or exit their derivatives positions after December 23, when all positions still open will be closed.

The crypto exchange, the biggest in the world by volume, has been trying to get ahead on compliance as it has drawn scrutiny from regulators worldwide.

In August, it told Australian clients they could no longer open new accounts for options, margin products and leveraged tokens, just weeks after restricting new futures accounts.

“Binance welcomes developments to our industry’s regulatory framework as they pose opportunities for the market players to have greater collaboration with the regulators,” it said in a statement.

“We are committed to working constructively in policy-making that seeks to benefit every user,” it added.

The crypto exchange has faced pressure from regulators in the UK, Singapore, Canada, Japan, Germany and elsewhere, who have issued bans and warnings over its operations. It also is the target of probes in the US, where the Commodity Futures Trading Commission is looking into Binance over insider trading.

Binance said in July it would do everything it could to be compliant with local regulations and to be licensed to operate everywhere. It has closed crypto trading in Singapore dollars on its platform and stopped offering crypto derivatives in Brazil.