Can Binance Save The Failing Crypto Market?

The spectacular downfall of the digital currency exchange FTX earlier this month led to many people forecasting the complete collapse of the entire industry. For one enterprising CEO, however, the time might just be right to swoop in and rescue crypto (all while making a tidy profit, of course).

Enter Changpeng Zhao

Rival crypto exchange Binance had planned to buy out FTX before it realized that the firm was beyond salvaging. Now, its CEO is flirting with the concept of reimagining the entire industry and reshaping its future.

During a recent event, Changpeng Zhao said: “We actually think this is a very good cleansing period. The weak projects are gone, and the industry is much healthier.”

He had already used his platform to call for an ethical and honest approach to cryptocurrency transactions. On the heels of FTX’s bankruptcy, he said that other crypto leaders “cannot let a few bad actors sully the reputation of this industry when it’s still in its infancy.”

His influence is spreading

After calling for reforms such as offering proof of reserves, several other exchanges — Kucoin, Crypto.com, Bitfinex, and OKX, to name a few — have confirmed that they plan to implement such features.

As Blair Halliday of the crypto exchange Kraken explained, the collapse of FTX was “a major setback” for the industry, but “sensible industry measures, such as proof-of-reserves audits, will be a crucial starting point to regaining the loss of trust in the ecosystem.”

Bitfinex CTO Paolo Aroino echoed Halliday’s assessment, predicting that companies that behave responsibly will survive and “the cryptocurrency industry will emerge stronger” as a result.

It’s clear that Zhao wants to be a big part of that process.

Chris Agee November 22nd, 2022

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