FILE PHOTO: Binance logo is seen in this illustration taken March 31, 2023. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
(Reuters) -Binance has withdrawn its application for a crypto license in Germany, suggesting the world's biggest cryptocurrency exchange is rethinking its immediate expansion plans amid a tough regulatory stance towards the industry.
German regulators had told Binance they would not grant it a crypto custody license, Reuters reported last month.
"Binance confirms it has proactively withdrawn its BaFin (Germany's financial regulator) application. The situation, both in the global market and regulation, has changed significantly," a spokesperson for the company said on Wednesday.
"Binance still intends to apply for appropriate licensing in Germany, but it is essential that our submission accurately reflects these changes," the spokesperson added.
The company and its CEO Changpeng Zhao have been under pressure since last month after a lawsuit from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission accusing Binance of operating a "web of deception".
Binance has denied the regulator's charges.
But the company is also facing uphill battles elsewhere. It had to exit the Netherlands for failing to meet registration requirements to operate as a virtual asset service provider, and is under investigation in France.
The BaFin application withdrawal was first reported by CoinDesk.
(Reporting by Niket Nishant in Bengaluru and Elizabeth Howcroft in London; Editing by KRishna Chandra Eluri)
