Helium Foundation reacts to Binance HNT delisting
After major crypto exchange Binance said it would stop trading Helium Network Token (HNT), the Helium Foundation The COO reportedly stated that “there is no basis” to do so and that the coin meets all the standards set by the exchange.
Four days ago, Binance announced that it would “remove and cease trading” certain spot, cross and isolated margin pairs, specifically HNT/BTC, HNT/BUSD, HNT/USDT and OOKI/BNB.
Cross and isolated margin lending was suspended just one day later, on 7 October, while all users’ positions will be closed, an automatic settlement carried out and all pending orders canceled on 12 October.
“We will then remove the HNT/BUSD and HNT/USDT cross and isolated margin pairs,” the exchange said.
However, the announcement did not provide a specific explanation for the decision.
Binance spokesperson Jessica Jung was quoted by Forbes as saying that the exchange periodically reviews each coin listed to “ensure it continues to meet a high level of standards,” adding that:
“When a coin or token no longer meets this standard or there are changes in the industry, we conduct a more thorough review and potentially remove it to protect our users.”
However, Scott Sigel, COO at the Helium Foundation, responded to the exchange in a statement to Forbes, saying that
“There is no basis for Binance to remove more HNT pairs. There has been no change in the integrity of HNT, and it continues to meet all the standards set by the stock exchange.”
Sigel claimed that “dozens of other exchanges” continue to support the coin, adding: “We hope Binance reverses course and relists the other HNT trading pairs soon.”
Forbes noted that Nova Labsthe founders of the Helium network, which is supported by large companies such as Andreessen Horowitz and Multicoin Capitaldeclined to comment on the record.
Could increasing regulations be behind this?
There was speculation about whether the exchange is making moves in response to the growing regulatory scrutiny – both of Binance and the crypto industry in general – particularly from The Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) in the case of the United States. Binance was also previously accused of doing the opposite of what it preaches – dodging regulations. The stock exchange has rejected these accusations.
Carol Van Cleef, head of the Blockchain and Digital Assets practice at the law firm Bradleytold Forbes that coin exchanges delisted for several reasons, “sometimes after being informed of an investigation or enforcement by an agency that [SEC].”
She said,
The delisting of Helium “is going to attract attention and make people question why.”
Others have also commented on the ever-increasing gaze of the regulator turning towards the industry. Poppy Alexander, partner at Constantine Cannonrepresenting SEC whistleblowers, told Forbes that
“There have been rumors now for months that a big regulatory push into crypto is coming,” and federal enforcement officials are “very eager and smart and eager to go.”
Others questioned whether Binance’s recent failure could have something to do with it – although it’s unclear how the exchange would benefit from the latest move if it did. As reported, four Binance.us customers unexpectedly received a total of nearly $22 million in crypto after the exchange mistakenly credited holders of Helium’s new MOBILE token with the more valuable HNT instead.
Helium has also seen its share of accusations: Forbes recently claimed that Helium executives, as well as their family, had amassed most of the wealth at the project’s launch, saying that: “Helium has made a handful of people disproportionately rich: its executives and their friends.”
But Amir Haleem, Helium’s co-founder and CEO, was quoted as saying that “none of these numbers [cited by Forbes] feels unreasonable to me or disgusting in any way.”
Monday morning (8:40 UTC) HNT is trading at $4.52. It is down 1.4% in a day, 5.7% in a week, 3% in a month and 77% in a year. It fell almost 92% from its November 2021 record high.
Per Binance’s announcement, it also limited trading pairs for The Ooki Protocol. At the end of September, The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) charged Ooki’s founders and the Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO) with a number of violations. You can learn more about it here.
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Learn more:
– Helium price benefits from Solana’s migration plans – Where next for HNT?
– Have helium managers lined their own pockets while not delivering the product?
– HNT’s price is largely untouched by Helium’s “user” controversy
– How Helium uses crypto to grow decentralized internet
