Binance Seeks to Establish Thai Crypto Exchange Following MOU With Local Business
Binance’s move can be seen as a way for the exchange to regain a footing in the country following criminal complaints last year.
Blockworks exclusive art by Axel Rangel
key takeaways
- Binance is seeking to re-establish itself in Thailand and is soliciting the help of local business Gulf Energy Development Public Company
- A subsidiary of the Gulf Energy company, Gulf Innova, was established last month to focus on digital asset and blockchain infrastructure development within the kingdom
The world’s largest crypto exchange by trade volume, Binance, is looking to regain a foothold in Thailand after partnering with a local business to set up a crypto exchange within the kingdom.
In a letter to the Thai Stock Exchange on Monday, Binance’s partner, Gulf Innova Company, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Gulf Energy Development Public Company announced it had entered into a memorandum of understanding with the leading crypto exchange.
Owned by Thai billionaire Sarath Ratanavadi, Gulf Energy is a holding company with a portfolio of electricity, steam and chilled water generating projects. Gulf Innova was formed under the holding company last month in a move that will see Innova focused on digital asset infrastructure development.
“The Company’s partnership with Binance will help Thailand advance its development of digital assets and blockchain infrastructure,” Gulf said in its letter.
Binance’s bid at a partnership with a local Thai business can be viewed as a means for the exchange to regain a footing in the country after being rocked by criminal complaints last year from Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission following allegations of operating without an appropriate license.
Gulf said it would use its “unparalleled network of local corporates from real sector and the financial sector” while Binance would bring its exchange technology.
“This partnership is aligned with the company’s policy to expand its business and strengthen its digital infrastructure ventures while providing further opportunities for the company to expand into other digital asset-related initiatives in the future,” Gulf said.
Last month, Binance was approved for a license-in-principle in Bahrain as the exchange looks to expand its footprint in the Middle East. That followed the withdrawal of a license application in Singapore, which the company said was due to its acquisition of a regulated exchange in the city-state, which rendered its prior application redundant.
Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters:
- The Breakdown: Decoding crypto and the markets. Daily.
- Empire: Crypto news and analysis to start your day.
- Forward Guidance: The intersection of crypto, macro and policy.
- 0xResearch: Alpha directly in your inbox.
- Lightspeed: All things Solana.
- The Drop: Apps, games, memes and more.
- Supply Shock: Bitcoin, bitcoin, bitcoin.
