Binance billion fine looming?
Investor protection as an afterthought
The news that OpenSea had to admit that one of its staff members was trading NFTs shortly after these were published was shocking. A blatant insider scandal with little information about how conflicts of interests are managed within OpenSea. This incident showed that crypto players have to mind investor protection scenarios. One should not think of long established regulatory standards as simply antiquated measures that protect the business models of intermediaries who are stuck in the past.
Binance currently faces a number of regulatory backlashes and it seems that regulators play catch up after the OpenSea crimes were uncovered but not presecuted. Apparently, the current ongoing probe by US regulators was expanded one day after the OpenSea insider saga. This begs the question whether regulators do not think of market manipulation as a concern in a two trillion market? Also, it seems even less comforting if regulators fold and ban crypto services of Binance. Such services can always be accessed through a VPN and regulators know that. An informed discussion would certainly go beyond outright bans and can impact Binance' reputation. Regulators with expertise could send meaninful warnings if they wanted to participate in a lively discussion about how crypto services should be designed. Also, banks could be asked to support regulators if these had to fine global central or decentral crypto players.
Do regulators stand up for values that matter in a decentralized world?
Today, we need regulation more than ever. There are loads of dedicated professionals with regulatory expertise who could bring in a much needed shift in thinking how banking and investing services should work based on existing consumer and investor protection regimes. Governments are playing a dangerous game if regulators are not changing gears soon. A smart world with crypto based services should be based on the right values and regulators should ensure a fair play between different innovative forces. If regulators cannot win the trust of the public to be able to manage crypto services, they may contribute to increased volatility in the fast paced finance industry. Investors will eventually suffer and may not know who to turn to.