Binance has announced changes to its product offering because of the new MiCA stablecoin rules, which will come into effect on June 30, 2024 in the European Economic Area (EEA).
Only certain regulated companies will be able to issue and offer to the public stablecoins, those stablecoins will be “Regulated Stablecoins”.
Several existing stablecoins may not fall into this category and will therefore be subject to certain restrictions. These will be categorized as “Unauthorized Stablecoins.”
Binance will make phased changes to Unauthorized Stablecoins’ availability. These transitional measures aim at allowing EEA users to switch to Regulated Stablecoins while avoiding any market disruption and complying with MiCA stablecoin rules.
Binance will restrict the availability of Unauthorized Stablecoins for EEA users across its product offerings, starting from June 30, 2024 (UTC+3).
- Binance Convert: Convert functions for Unauthorized Stablecoins will be maintained in a “sell-only” mode. This means in practice that EEA users will be able to sell Unauthorized Stablecoins for: other digital assets (such as bitcoin or ether), Regulated Stablecoins, or fiat currencies (depending on the availability of fiat channels in one’s jurisdiction). This will allow users to easily switch to Regulated Stablecoins. Buying Unauthorized Stablecoins with Convert will not be possible from 2024-06-30 (UTC+3).
- Spot Trading: Spot trading pairs with Unauthorized Stablecoins will remain available until further notice. During the interim period, digital asset trading pairs with Unauthorized Stablecoins will coexist with trading pairs with Regulated Stablecoins.
- Wallet: Custody and wallet services of Unauthorized Stablecoins will continue. Users will be able to withdraw or deposit stablecoins from or to their Binance wallet.
Apart from the aforementioned products in Binance Convert, Spot Trading and Wallet, Binance will implement product restrictions across its entire product offering. These restrictions will prevent users from entering into new products or service offerings involving Unauthorized Stablecoins. Please note the specific product impacts beyond this general product restriction are effective by 2024-06-30 (UTC+3), unless otherwise specified.
Rewards across the platform, for example from the Rewards Center, Campaigns and Referrals will be changed to Regulated Stablecoins, BNB or other non-stablecoin tokens.
If users have an existing voucher with Unauthorized Stablecoins, they can still claim it until its expiration date.
Spot Copy Trading will cease for EEA users as of 2024-06-29 23:59 (UTC+3).
Impacted Lead Traders and Copy Traders are encouraged to close their positions in their Copy Trading activities and transfer their funds back to their respective Spot Wallets before 2024-06-29 23:59 (UTC+3).
After 2024-06-29 23:59 (UTC+3), all open positions in Spot Copy Trading will be closed at market price – any remaining assets in a Copy Trader’s Spot Copy trading sub-account will be returned to the respective Copy Trader’s Spot Wallet by 2024-06-30 23:59 (UTC+3), subject to first deduction of any unsettled Profit Sharing amounts, which will be paid to the respective Lead Trader(s).
New borrowings of Unauthorized Stablecoins will be blocked.
Transfer of Unauthorized Stablecoins as Margin collateral into users’ Margin Wallets will be blocked. Depending on the specific Margin product, it may be necessary for users to utilize alternative margin collateral and/or decrease their positions to prevent liquidation.
Existing Margin loans will remain unaffected and not subject to forced liquidation until further notice. Impacted Margin traders are encouraged to close margin loans involving Unauthorized Stablecoins.
Existing holdings of Unauthorized Stablecoins held in Margin Wallet may continue to be used for trading until further notice.
FDUSD pool will no longer be available for EEA users.
New subscriptions, including Auto-Subscribe feature, involving Unauthorized Stablecoins will be blocked in Simple Earn Flexible and Locked Products (e.g., this also applies to products like GNS Locked Products with DAI rewards) before 2024-06-29 (UTC+3).
All existing Simple Earn subscriptions involving Unauthorized Stablecoins remain unaffected and will not be subjected to forced redemption, until further notice.
- Binance Loans & VIP Loans
New Loan subscription and new incremental collateral involving Unauthorized Stablecoins will be blocked before 2024-06-29 (UTC+3).
Existing fixed-term Loans involving Unauthorized Stablecoins will be held until maturity and not be subject to forced repayment.
Existing collateral and loans of Unauthorized Stablecoins will be kept open until repayment.
Topping up of Unauthorized Stablecoins to improve Loan-to-Value when an Unauthorized Stablecoin is used as collateral will remain unaffected until further notice in order to prevent forced liquidation.
New Auto-Invest subscriptions with Unauthorized Stablecoins will be blocked.
Existing plans involving selling Unauthorized Stablecoins may continue until Unauthorized Stablecoin holdings held in Earn Wallet are depleted.
Existing plans involving buying of Unauthorized Stablecoins will no longer be available to EEA users.
New subscriptions of Dual Investment products with Unauthorized Stablecoins will be blocked before 2024-06-29 (UTC+3).
Existing subscriptions of Dual Investment products with Unauthorized Stablecoins will be held until maturity and will settle as normal accordingly.
New subscriptions involving Unauthorized Stablecoins will be blocked before 2024-06-29 (UTC+3).
Unauthorized Stablecoins will not be permitted as a payment method.
EEA users will not be able to send or receive any Unauthorized Stablecoins.
EEA users will also no longer be able use Binance Pay with any Unauthorized Stablecoins.
All Unauthorized Stablecoins payouts to EEA recipients will be blocked.
Any refunds to EEA users can be processed in EUR.
Transactions involving any Unauthorized Stablecoins will be blocked.
EEA users will not be able to create or receive Red Packet in any Unauthorized Stablecoins.
Red Packets in Unauthorized Stablecoins received before 2024-06-29 23:59 (UTC+3) will still be redeemable.
Refunding an expired Red Packet received before 2024-06-29 23:59 (UTC+3) will be allowed.
NFT purchases involving Unauthorized Stablecoins will be blocked.
Existing USDT rewards earned before 2024-06-29 can still be distributed to EEA users after 2024-06-29 (UTC+3).
Gift Cards will be only available in Regulated Stablecoins or other digital assets for EEA users for purchases or redemptions.
Gift Cards minted in Unauthorized Stablecoins before 2024-06-29 (UTC+3) can be refunded to wallet in the original stablecoin currency, redeemed in Regulated Stablecoin or other selectable digital assets.
- Web3 Wallet – Earn Section
New supply to lending protocols involving Unauthorized Stablecoins will be blocked in the Simple Yield zone before 2024-06-29 (UTC+3).
All existing active positions under the Simple Yield zone remain unaffected until further notice.
Purchase of Unauthorized Stablecoins via P2P will be restricted, selling of Unauthorized Stablecoins via P2P remains available.
Purchases of Unauthorized Stablecoins through Binance OTC will be blocked.
OTC Block Trading involving Unauthorized Stablecoins will remain available in sell-only mode similarly as Binance Convert.
