Binance hits back at WSJ, Hong Kong crypto ETF’s take ‘$50B equivalent’: Asia Express

Our weekly roundup of news from East Asia curates the industry’s most important developments.

Binance is under scrutiny yet again

Cryptocurrency exchange Binance has been accused of firing its own investigators after discovering that its VIP client, props trading firm DWF Labs, allegedly engaged in acts of market manipulation.

A May 9 Wall Street Journal report claimed that DWF Labs engaged in market manipulation, wash trading and inflated trading volumes amounting to $300 million through deals with crypto projects. After the exchange’s surveillance team recommended offboarding the client, Binance allegedly sided with DWF Labs and fired the investigator, arguing insufficient evidence for the claim.

*DWF Labs co-founder Andrei Grachev. (X)*

Binance has denied involvement. “We affirm our strict market surveillance program. We do not tolerate market abuse,” the exchange said in a tweet. “Market maker competition is fierce and our investigation team’s job is to be neutral and look at the evidence without any bias, including bias that might come from market-making firms’ claims against their competitors.”

According to the exchange, it has offboarded 355,000 users with a total transaction volume of $2.5 trillion for violating its terms of use in the past three years.

DWF Labs has also denied the allegations. “We want to clarify that many recent allegations reported in the press are unfounded and distort the facts,” it said. “DWF Labs operates with the highest standards of integrity, transparency, and ethics, and we remain committed to supporting you and our over 700 partners across the crypto ecosystem.”

Binance co-founder Yi He, the spouse of co-founder and former CEO Changpeng Zhao, penned a response dripping in irony, writing:

“I am very grateful to the WSJ for their consistent and long-term devotion to Binance, which has greatly increased our exposure and saved us a lot of marketing budget. However, I have noticed an interesting phenomenon where some mainstream media articles are increasingly driven by emotions and biases rather than facts. For example, the complaints of former employees can become the basis of an article, while Binance’s proactive assistance to law enforcement agencies in investigating and apprehending the mastermind behind Zkasino (as a matter of fact) is not deemed worthy of reporting.”

DWF Labs is a prominent trading firm in the crypto industry. Founded by Andrei Grachev in 2021, the firm invests in promising projects and provides long-term financial support to them, according to its website.

Thailand Web3 Music Festival concludes

Music idol protocol Fansland’s music festival in Bangkok, Thailand, attracted over 30,000 festival go-ers on May 4 and 5.

The Web3 aspect was perhaps of less appeal than a performance by South Korean pop star PSY, the creator of “Gangnam Style.” More than 20 other artists graced the stage,including renowned Cantonese Hip-Hop artist Edison Chen, powerhouse vocalists Henry Lau, Gen1es, BKPP, Chanyeol, BUS, DreamNote, Pretzelle, Sistar19, Taemin and 24kGoldn.

“Their electrifying performances set the stage ablaze, creating an atmosphere of pure excitement and energy that left the audience in awe,” organizers breathlessly reported.