One of the biggest crypto exchanges in the industry, Binance, delisted Monero (XMR), a popular privacy-focused coin, triggering a substantial price drop and trading volume right after the announcement.

Shortly after, Monero reassured users that they would never compromise on privacy. The main reason for the delisting is likely that Monero uses stealth addresses, while Binance requires deposits from publicly transparent addresses.

Monero will never compromise on privacy.

You can trade Monero on other exchanges, on DEXs, and with atomic swaps. Please self-custody your XMR. https://t.co/Uba3GwZMRW

— Monero (XMR) (@monero) February 6, 2024

The announcement wasn’t taken lightly, sparking rumors and backlash on Crypto Twitter. Several users, influencers, and even institutions criticized the move or think Binance is knuckling under US regulations. Funny enough, the announcement came a day after Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen called for cryptocurrency regulations, especially for stablecoins.

XMR’s price sharply declined in the following hours, dropping 32%. At press time, XMR is trading below $115, according to data from Coinmarketcap. These lows have not been seen since mid-September 2023.

High-Level Standards

The Binance Customer Support team jumped into the discussion and assisted users’ commentaries and concerns, but instead of addressing the questions individually, they provided a single copy/pasted response for all users, which didn’t sit well for them.

Hi there. At Binance, we periodically review each digital asset we list to ensure that it continues to meet the high level of standard we expect. When a coin or token no longer meets this standard, or the industry changes, we conduct a more in-depth review and potentially delist it.

Hi there.
At Binance, we periodically review each digital asset we list to ensure that it continues to meet the high level of standard we expect. When a coin or token no longer meets this standard, or the industry changes, we conduct a more in-depth review and potentially delist…

— Binance Customer Support (@BinanceHelpDesk) February 6, 2024

Despite Changpeng Zhao resigning and pleading guilty to violating Anti-Money Laundering and sanctions laws in the US in late 2023, Binance is subject to five years of surveillance, monitoring, and heavy compliance with US regulators as part of a settlement agreement.