Ex-Fed official joins Binance.US amid regulatory hurdles
Binance.US has appointed Martin Grant, a former chief compliance and ethics officer at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, to its board of directors.
Grant, who currently serves as the global head of regulatory affairs at JST Digital, joins the board following the resignation of founder Changpeng Zhao from his role as chair amid regulatory settlements.
Grant’s appointment comes at a critical time for Binance.US as it navigates ongoing legal challenges with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The agency has been pushing for crypto trading platforms like Binance.US to comply with national securities exchange regulations, alleging that some operate as unregistered brokers, exchanges, and clearinghouses.
“The American digital asset industry is at an inflection point, and I am excited to help guide the future of one of the country’s most influential and customer-centric crypto platforms,” said Grant, whose extensive experience in compliance roles, particularly during his 17 years at the New York Fed, makes him a valuable asset to Binance.US.
The exchange is currently engaged in a legal battle with the SEC, which escalated last year with allegations similar to those faced by other platforms such as Coinbase and Kraken. Binance.US CEO Norman Reed, formerly the exchange’s general counsel, remains optimistic about the outcome, criticizing the SEC for not providing clear guidance on which digital assets are considered securities.
Reed, who has a background as a senior enforcement attorney at the New York Fed and special counsel with the SEC, commented on the challenges faced by the exchange, “My view is they did not provide very clear guidance to the markets about what was, which digital assets were securities or not. They relied on this Howey case about an orange grove that was decided in 1946 under very different factual circumstances, very different legal circumstances.”
Despite facing regulatory hurdles, Binance.US has experienced a notable rebound in trading volumes, revenue, and user engagement during the past two quarters. This uptick is partly due to a recovery across the broader market. The exchange is also rehiring some employees who were laid off last year, according to Binance.US COO Chris Blodgett.
