Privacy advocates scored a big victory in June with Binance announcing that it was reversing its decision to remove privacy coins for users in a number of European countries.
As a result of this decision, users in Italy, Poland, Spain and France will be allowed to continue trading tokens including Zcash (ZEC), Monero (XMR), Decred (DCR), Horizen’s ZEN, Verge ( XVG), Dash (DASH), Secret (SCRT), Firo, Navcoin (NAV), MobileCoin (MOB), Beam and PIVX.
Banning coins would have been a big, big error. Privacy coins allow individuals to combat financial surveillance by providing enhanced transactional security, and the crypto communities should be grateful that Binance no longer plans to remove them from its listings. In the modern climate of excessive surveillance and general lack of privacy for users around the world, their importance cannot be overstated.
Related: Binance was wrong to start Monero, Zcash and other privacy coins
The fungibility of these coins, which makes each individual unit interchangeable and censorship-resistant, is an advantage they hold over almost all other cryptocurrencies, and losing those extra layers of security and anonymity would have been an incredible loss. for the community.
Privacy coins have gained traction in recent years due to the emergence of a series of tough regulations. Binance’s move, in fact, comes soon after the European Union ironed out its much-discussed standards for digital assets, the recent Crypto-Asset Markets Regulations (MiCA). After signing this law, July will also see the European Securities and Markets Authority launch a MiCA consultation process. It’s fair to say there’s quite a bit of movement in the space, and we may not have seen the last of what Europe has in store for the crypto industry.
But the truth is that privacy is a fundamental human right protected by the United Nations. Article 12 of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that “no one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy” and that “everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or infringement”, so why is crypto different?
This concept is all the more crucial in the digital age as the risks of data abuse increase exponentially and as tech giants have all the tools at their disposal to try to prevent people from taking control. of their private information.
In fact, Binance’s decision reflects the complex balance between regulatory compliance and user privacy needs that exchanges must strive for at all times, even when faced with international regulations that vary from country to country. another, and even if some countries decide to apply stricter rules. rules than others.
Related: SEC charges against Binance and Coinbase are terrible for DeFi
As for the future implications of the Binance decision – but also those arising from the intense regulatory pressure on Europe – one could see a potential increase in demand and, subsequently, the development of the private coin sector. Ironically, the precedent set by Binance could very well lead to wider acceptance of privacy coins, as it may cause other exchanges to rethink their stance on privacy coins, which could lead to greater availability. We will see.
Ultimately, this week’s news draws attention to the real power of community sentiment when it comes to shaping crypto policies and regulations. “We have revised the way we rank privacy coins,” reads the official statement released by the cryptocurrency exchange, “after carefully considering feedback from our community.” Reading between the lines, what is clear is that the backlash they received last month work.
It’s hard to overstate how much privacy is really needed in the crypto industry, and that’s why we can’t back down when it comes to fighting for it at every opportunity.
At the heart of it, the community’s influence on Binance’s decision demonstrates its power to shape the future of the crypto industry — and we’d better not forget that.
The crypto community should come together to keep fighting for privacy. It is the very foundation of Web3. And, as the Romans said, ibi semper is victoria ubi is concordia: There is always victory where there is unity.
Daniele Servadei is the co-founder and CEO of Sellix, an e-commerce platform based in Italy.
This article is for general informational purposes and is not intended to be and should not be considered legal or investment advice. The views, thoughts and opinions expressed herein are those of the author alone and do not necessarily reflect or represent the views and opinions of Cointelegraph.