Crypto exchange Binance says it will step up its compliance efforts, including data-sharing with regulators and a tax-tracking tool

July 28, 2021

Crypto exchange Binance says it will step up its compliance efforts, including data-sharing with regulators and a tax-tracking tool

Binance said it will develop a tax reporting tool to track activity on its crypto-trading platform.
The company unveiled its plans at a press conference at which it said it would work more closely with regulators.
Binance said it would share some user data with market watchdogs as part of its efforts to step up compliance.
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Crypto platform Binance is pushing ahead with its efforts to improve the compliance around its trading activities and announced on Tuesday some of those measures will include launching a tax reporting tool and some data-sharing with regulators.

The tax reporting tool will track cryptocurrency trading activities on the Binance platform, the largest exchange by volume, to ensure users meet their legal obligations. Among other things, the tool will allow them to move their Binance history to third-party tax vendors to get an overview of their local liabilities, the company said.

This move is part of Binance's wider strategy to cooperate with regulators after the company came under fire from the likes of the UK, Canada, Japan, Germany, Thailand, Italy, and the Cayman Islands.

"The fact is that in many countries around the world, crypto regulations are still evolving and we are all discovering the right path for this promising, young and exciting industry," Changpeng Zhao, co-founder and CEO of Binance, said in an emailed press release.

"We are working hard to not only align with evolving regulatory standards but to also provide a better experience for our users, from updating safeguards to introducing new products like our tax reporting tool," he said.

The privacy that the decentralized nature of cryptocurrencies has afforded users has always been a strong selling point for traders and investors. But it's the very thing that regulators have said can facilitate online crime, such as money laundering and other forms of fraud.

Binance is under investigation by the US Justice Department, as part of a wider effort to deal with money laundering and tax-related offences.

Part of the company's plans to work more closely with regulators on compliance issues will be sharing some of its users' data, according to Binance's head of legal and compliance department, Sam Hong.

"We will be supporting the sharing of user data. As long as it's supported by the appropriate legal process, of course, so that we are not in breach of any laws but we will be cooperating with the regulator on that basis," Sam Hong said at Tuesday's press conference.

Read the original article on Business Insider