Cryptocurrency giant Binance has lost a considerable portion of its market share, according to a recent report by Kaiko.
Binance's share of global trading volume currently stands at 55%, down from 81% just a year ago.
Meanwhile, smaller exchanges keep gaining momentum. Competitors of the likes of OKX have managed to significantly increase their market share over the same period of time.
The cryptocurrency exchange, which was founded back in 2017 by controversial Chinese-Canadian entrepreneur Changpeng Zhao, managed to turn into a cryptocurrency giant.
Alex DovbnyaJust mere months after its launch, Binance appeared among the top exchanges by trading volumes, competing with such veterans as Coinbase. Its success was partially attributed to its successful initial coin offerings (ICOs). The exchange also quickly gained prominence due to its willingness to embrace new altcoins.
Its success, of course, was not without controversies. Last November, CZ was forced to step down from his CEO role after he was charged with violating anti-money laundering laws in the U.S. Binance was forced to fork out a $4 billion fine.
As reported by Bloomberg, the US Department of Justice is now seeking a three-year prison sentence for Zhao. At the same time, the lawyers of the controversial entrepreneur insist that he should be punished with probation instead.
CZ apologized for making "poor decisions" ahead of his sentencing which is going to take place on Apr. 30.
Despite CZ's resignation, Binance is struggling to recover from the reputational damage caused by the US DOJ charges after its market share ended up plunging by 30% in 2023.
Vladislav Sopov
Dan Burgin