Binance CEO Clarifies IP Ban for Decentralized Exchange

Recently, we reported that Binance would be preventing IPs from several countries from accessing its decentralized exchange. The surprise warning came not with a blog post from the company but via a pop-up message for users visiting the DEX from these soon-to-be-banned countries. However, Changpeng Zhao has now clarified that the situation is not as dire as many initially thought. Zhao said that the IP ban only applies to users visiting the website Binance.org. However, the DEX itself (i.e. the blockchain) can’t ban anyone. He elaborated that there are currently plenty of wallets which support trading on the DEX directly — so one does not even have to visit the site directly.

The messages being passed is wrong. https://t.co/VtrSxEaW22 (the website) blocks certain countries; DEX (the blockchain) does not, it can't.

And there are plenty of wallets support trading on DEX directly.

Website ≠ Blockchain. 😂😂😂

— CZ Binance (@cz_binance) June 3, 2019

If you’re from the United States or any other of the other 28 countries, don’t be alarmed. Although you are not able to visit the DEX’s main website, there’s nothing stopping you from trading on it. Zhao also retweeted a few messages from individuals who listed alternatives to Binance’s website. Many wallets currently support DEX trading, like Trust Wallet and Coinomi. The list of options means that no country can ever be blacklisted from Binance DEX. It is supposed to be impossible to do so, by design. Zhao touted this fact by even lending his support to VPN options in his many retweets following the clarification. It’s still unclear why Binance is banning certain IPs to begin with, however. CZ did not specify — but it is likely due to legal concerns. Is one of the strengths of decentralized exchanges that they can never be censored? Let us know your thoughts below.