Jane Street Group, Tower Research Capital, and Radix Trading are the three unnamed American VIP clients of Binance in the CFTC lawsuit against the exchange. Bloomberg reports, citing sources.
In late March the regulator accused Binance of ‘fabricated’ compliance with U.S. rules governing derivatives trading. According to the Commission, the platform did not block access by American residents, contrary to promises, and, on the contrary, helped institutional players circumvent controls.
As examples in the suit, the CFTC used three anonymous companies under code names. The Commission did not lodge any charges against them.
According to Bloomberg sources, Radix is identified in the regulator’s complaint as Firm A. Jane Street and Tower Research appear under letters B and C, respectively.
Earlier, The Wall Street Journal confirmed Radix’s identification as Firm A. Co-founder of the firm Benjamin Blander commented to the newspaper that they do not consider trading through offshore entities on Binance to be illegal and that they cooperate with the CFTC.
According to the regulator, institutional traders on Binance trading derivatives received VIP status. The white-glove service offered preferential transaction fees and faster access to trading in exchange for providing liquidity.
The platform also promised such clients ‘prompt notification of any law-enforcement investigation into their accounts’, assistance in circumventing KYC and its own restrictions. For example, according to the CFTC, the exchange team helped Radix set up trading through VPN.
Founder and CEO of Binance, Changpeng Zhao, who was also named in the suit, described the regulator’s actions as ‘unexpected and disappointing’.