Binance, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, counts China as its largest market, followed by South Korea, Turkey, Vietnam, and then the British Virgin Islands, according to documents reviewed by the Wall Street Journal. Despite the ban on crypto within China, Binance teams reportedly collaborate with Chinese law enforcement to detect potential criminal activity, and the exchange has 900,000 active users in-country.
Data from the Journal shows that China is a $80.6 billion futures market and a $9.4 billion spot market for Binance. South Korea provides $56.9 billion in futures volume and $1.39 billion in spot volume, while the British Virgin Islands is responsible for $12.82 billion in spot volume and $5 billion in futures volume.
Typically traders based in China use a combination of a Virtual Private Network (VPN) and a digital residency program such as Palau’s RNS.ID to bypass geographical restrictions, said a spokesperson for the exchange. Binance also maintains an active peer-to-peer crypto market that allows trading in Chinese yuan-denominated pairs and allows for the fiat onramps via Alipay and WeChat pay.