According to Valor Econômico on April 18, Brazilian officials are investigating Binance and its employees for a potential financial crime. The country’s Securities and Exchange Commission (CVM) suspects that Binance may have illegally provided crypto derivatives to customers, despite the government issuing a stop order to the company in 2020.
Although Binance halted futures trading in 2021 to comply with the order, recent discoveries suggest that the company may not have fully complied. Screenshots reportedly show that Brazilian customers can alter the language settings on Binance’s website to access restricted features. Binance has acknowledged this workaround, and one support agent even provided instructions on how to do so, which is considered illegal in Brazil.
According to a legal expert cited by Valor, Binance may not be held responsible for the actions of its employees. Instead, the customer service agent who provided illegal advice could face imprisonment for six months to two years if found guilty.
Binance declined to comment on the ongoing investigation and insisted that it does not offer derivatives in Brazil. However, Brazil’s allegations against Binance are similar to those in a separate case in the United States, where the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) accused Binance of helping customers bypass geographic restrictions using virtual private networks (VPNs).
