Binance covered its SAFU fund to USDC for this reason
Binance, one of the largest crypto exchanges by volume, is making headlines for its decision to convert its insurance fund to the stablecoin USD Coin (USDC). The exchange cited “reliability and stability” concerns for its move to drop other crypto asset holdings like Bitcoin (BTC) and Binance Coin (BNB) for USDC.
Binance drops BTC, BNB like hotcakes, picks USDC as top choice for SAFU
Binance has created an emergency insurance fund for its investors. The SAFU fund is for making investors whole in the event of loss of user funds to hack or exploit on the exchange.
SAFU is typically valued at over $1 billion and the exchange held several cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Binance Coin, as part of the fund. However, the events of the past two weeks have triggered a correction in BTC and BNB prices. The two assets have wiped out a large chunk of their value, likely negatively impacting the $1 billion SAFU.
Binance decided to convert its insurance fund to USDC, a stablecoin pegged 1:1 against the US Dollar (USD). The exchange is seeking reliability and stability, USDC provides both.
Data from intelligence tracker Lookonchain shows that Binance deposited 16,277 BTC worth $1 billion and 1.36 million BNB tokens worth $748.62 million to a hot wallet, then withdrew 1 billion USDC to its SAFU fund wallet.
Binance sells its Bitcoin for USDC
Data platform Nansen’s snapshot of Binance’s SAFU wallet shows over $1 billion worth of assets.
Binance SAFU wallet
Bitcoin is expected to continue experiencing volatility with the halving event scheduled for April 20. The asset’s movements influence prices of top altcoins, and stablecoins like USDC may be the only “haven” for traders looking to safeguard the value of assets in their portfolio. This likely drove Binance to USDC.
Binance has turned to stablecoins before: TUSD, USDT in 2023
In March 2023, the largest exchange by volume dissolved its Binance USD (BUSD) holdings. SAFU saw a replacement of BUSD with True USD (TUSD) and USD Tether (USDT). The decision was motivated by a regulatory crackdown on BUSD issuer Paxos.
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