As you can hear, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is investigating the origins of the company and the BNB token, which is now the fifth largest among the world’s cryptocurrencies. According to the information, the focus is on the question of whether the BNB issue in 2017 was the issue of a security and should have been registered with the authority.
With regard to so-called initial coin offerings, or ICOs, for raising money, the Securities and Exchange Commission has already initiated dozens of enforcement measures. Its own digital currency helped Binance to become the world’s largest crypto trading venue. The company is also the focus of investigations by the US Department of Justice, the CFTC and the IRS.
Binance said it would not comment on ongoing discussions with regulators. The company stressed that it “continues to meet all the requirements of the supervisory authorities.” The SEC declined to comment.
Before the BNB launch in 2017, Binance outlined its plans in a white paper. In it, the volume of circulation was limited to 200 million pieces. Half of the tokens were sold through the ICO, which took place on several platforms around the world. Another 80 million tokens should be reserved for the founding team of Binance, which also includes the billionaire head of the company Changpeng Zhao.
In the white paper, Binance stated that 85 percent of the funds raised as part of the ICO should be used to build and market the global Binance exchange. Restrictions on participation in the ICO were not mentioned.
