Binance Leads Centralized Exchange Deposits With $23 Billion in 2024 Amid Regulatory Challenges

Leading Crypto exchange Binance has reportedly received a staggering $23 billion in customer deposits between January 1, 2024, and December 12, 2024, according to data from leading DeFi data aggregator, DeFiLama.

This figure places Binance at the top of centralized exchanges worldwide for deposits within the period. In a broader market look the crypto exchange market appears to have undergone a transformative shift in 2024, driven by a significant uptick in institutional activity. Major exchanges are witnessing unprecedented growth in Bitcoin and USDT deposits.

Binance’s performance is further promoted by its activity in USDT deposits. The exchange recorded substantial gains, with the average daily USDT deposit climbing by $94k. On November 3, 2024, Binance set a record with a daily average Bitcoin deposit of 6.85 BTC (approximately $465,000) marking a 14-fold growth in dollar terms from previous levels.

Trailing behind Binance, ByBit, one of the fastest-growing cryptocurrency exchanges, recorded the second-highest deposit volume at $8.13 billion. Other exchanges in the top five include OKX with $5.36 billion, Bitmex with $3.44 billion, and Robinhood with $2.31 billion. Remarkably, Binance’s deposits exceeded the combined total of the other top five exchanges, highlighting its dominance in the global blockchain and cryptocurrency industry.

Throughout the first quarter of 2024, Binance saw its revenue skyrocket, soaring to an impressive $66.8 million, a staggering 70% increase from the preceding quarter’s figures. This surge in revenue, unparalleled in comparison to any quarter in the preceding year, paints a compelling picture of the network’s enduring vitality. Fueling this surge in revenue is the remarkable appreciation in the value of BNB, the native cryptocurrency of the Binance ecosystem.

Despite its market leadership, Binance continues to face significant regulatory scrutiny. Recall that in March 2024, Binance announced plans to discontinue all services in Nigeria due to regulatory conflict in the country. The crypto exchange which started operations in Nigeria around 2020, discontinued operations after the federal government accused it of exploiting Nigeria’s currency, the Naira, causing its value to plummet.

Also, in the United States, the exchange was fined $4.3 billion for violating anti-money laundering laws. In February 2024, Binance pleaded guilty and agreed to pay over $4 billion to resolve the Justice Department’s investigation into violations related to the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA), failure to register as a money-transmitting business, and the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).

The exchange founder and chief executive officer (CEO), Changpeng Zhao, also pleaded guilty to failing to maintain an effective anti-money laundering (AML) program, in violation of the BSA and has resigned as CEO of Binance. Amidst heightened regulatory scrutiny, in November 2024, Binance announced plans to expand its compliance team, aiming for a 34% growth by the end of 2024, to strengthen its regulatory efforts and ensure a safer. Binance has reportedly invested heavily in its compliance programs over the past year in hopes it will be a competitive advantage for the cryptocurrency exchange.

Despite regulatory headwinds and market uncertainties, Binance has demonstrated unwavering momentum, buoyed by the steadfast support of its community and the enduring appeal of its native token BNB.

Binance Coin (BNB) has remained a solid growth asset throughout 2024 through its competitor. On December 8, 2024, BNB achieved a significant milestone, reaching an all-time high while trading volume surged to unprecedented levels.

Analysts are becoming increasingly bullish on Binance Coin (BNB), with George “Softquant,” a TradingView analyst, pointing out that despite heightened competition from Ethereum (ETH) and Solana (SOL), BNB still has strong growth potential.