Leading cryptocurrency exchange Binance has announced it has burned 1.335 million BNB tokens, meaning that $639.4 million worth of the cryptocurrency has been permanently removed from circulation.
According to an update published by the exchange, the move was part of Binance’s commitment to burn BNB every quarter until 50% of the cryptocurrency’s supply has been burned. It adds that 40% of the cryptocurrency’s supply was allocated to the Binance team but the funds “remain untouched, with zero BNB tokens having been used or sold.”
A total of 17,839 BNB were burned as part of Binance’s BNB Pioneer Burn Program, which was created to help users who lost their assets in specific circumstances. It has helped this quarter a user recover $98,000 worth of USDC after they mistakenly sent the funds to the wrong address.
As part of the announcement, the embattled exchange noted it welcomes regulation as according to its CEO Changpeng Zhao, mass adoption “requires regulation.” In a post, CZ estimates that 95% of the population currently does not own any cryptocurrency and would be more comfortable “depositing money into a platform that’s licensed by some government body.”
The CEO noted that given Binance’s position in the market, when “regulators think about crypto regulation, they look at Binance.” This, he said, gives the firm the chance to communicate with regulators. On top of that, CZ wrote that effective regulations “generate positive long tail effects.”
The exchange has so far this year grown its compliance team by 500% and still plans on doubling it, as part of its mission to “increase the freedom of money for people around the world.”
BNB’s token burn is seen as a positive move for holders, as the supply available on the market drops. There are currently 166.8 million BNB in circulation, with each token currently trading close to the $480 mark.
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