00:00So, Ana, what's the story here? What's going on?
00:04So, according to new rules in Europe, fairly new rules called Mika,
00:09firms that want to operate crypto businesses in the European Union need licenses.
00:12And they've had until the upcoming July to get a license if you're in exchange.
00:17And Binance understands that it might not be able to get its license.
00:20It has been waiting for Greek regulators.
00:22They could have then passported the license across the European Union.
00:27They think they might not be getting it, and so they've told their users
00:30they might have to seize their services in the region.
00:33That would be a big deal because, obviously, Binance is the largest crypto exchange in the world
00:37and the largest operator of crypto exchanges in Europe as well.
00:40And so that would mean a significant shift for crypto markets in Europe.
00:44But, Ana, reasonable to think this is temporary until this regulatory issue is worked out?
00:52So, they have two weeks until the regulator can respond.
00:56And I believe regulators have a deadline once an application is set.
01:00They have to respond in a given time frame.
01:02So, it seems like they've been trying to figure out what options they have,
01:05whether to go apply to another regulator.
01:07But, according to rules, if they don't comply within or they don't have a license within the deadline,
01:12then they might have to stop operations, which then they're trying to also tell customers how to handle it,
01:17what options they would have as clients.
01:20Binance's journey in Europe has not been totally smooth.
01:23Just kind of walk us through, you know, the backdrop here as it faces this new challenge.
01:29So, it's not been smooth globally, I would say, right?
01:32We can remember in 2023, they had to settle with U.S. authorities over a money laundering case,
01:39and they had to pay a $4 billion fine.
01:41And in Europe, it sort of followed a similar trajectory.
01:43They were expanding aggressively.
01:45They were expanding their presence in France.
01:47And then they faced some investigations in France as well.
01:50And so, they've had to sort of figure out where to apply.
01:52So, you know, it's interesting to see, as rules come into play, who the winners will be.
01:57If you'll have traditional exchanges that had opted to have licenses early on, solidify their presence.
02:03Or if you'll have some of these other exchanges, we'll be able to, in the end, acquire licenses.
02:08We also have some European-born crypto exchanges who might end up benefiting from this.
02:13You know, we have some homegrown businesses who might get some of the clients if Binance has to leave.
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