What Is Binance?

Binance, founded in 2017, is the developer of a blockchain-based platform that facilitates the exchange of cryptocurrencies at low trading costs.

In fact, Binance is the largest cryptocurrency exchange with regard to daily trading volume, supporting about 350 different altcoins and 185 million users across 180 different countries worldwide.

In addition to a variety of cryptocurrencies that can be traded on the platform, Binance also allows for funds to be deposited in a plenty of different fiat currencies, from the US Dollar and the British Pound to the Russian Ruble and Turkish Lira.

 

How Was Binance Founded?

 

Based in the Cayman Islands, Binance was launched in 2017 by Changpeng Zhao, a Chinese-born entrepreneur who studied computer science at McGill University in Montreal after having relocated to Canada with his family as a child.

Zhao became involved in crypto trading pretty much from the inception of the industry, and after spending time learning about Bitcoin and working on blockchain development at Blockchain.info, he took the plunge and made the move to start his very own exchange.

Having started off raising $15 million by means of an initial coin offering (ICO) for Binance Coin (BNB), it wasn’t long before Binance started gaining traction.

The exchange became a favourite among traders due to several factors, including its global accessibility and strong security features as well as the fact that it offered relatively low transaction fees and plenty of different cryptocurrencies.

Zhao and Binance’s move to the global stage has played a major role in the company’s success, allowing it to scale quickly. The platform also offers a variety of extended services, including decentralised finance (DeFi), futures trading and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) which sets it apart from competitors.

 

How Binance Works as a Crypto Exchange Platform

 

In the most basic sense, Binance is a trading platform for different cryptocurrencies, allowing people to buy and sell their digital assets in a way that is safe and secure.

Now, Binance allows traders to use a variety of different digital assets and currencies – plenty of different cryptocurrencies (like Bitcoin and Ethereum), Binance Coin and fiat currencies.

This means that traders can buy and sell crypto, and if they want to, they can withdraw money in the form of a fiat currency of their choice. The same goes for when traders are getting started – deposits can be made in the form of a fiat currency or a cryptocurrency.

Trading on Binance, however, doesn’t come in a single form. The platform offers three different types of trading depending on what the trader’s financial situation is and what they’re hoping to achieve. Namely, the choices are spot trading, margin trading and futures trading.

 

  • Spot Trading: Users can simply buy and sell cryptocurrencies at current market prices
  • Margin Trading: Traders who are more experienced and advanced are able to borrow funds to trade with the hope of amplifying profits (although the risk is that this may exacerbate losses)
  • Futures Trading: Instead of trading at current prices, traders can place bets on what the future price of a cryptocurrency will be, providing potential for significant reward

 

Each type of trading introduces its own potential risks and rewards, so users in different financial positions may opt for different trading styles. And, ultimately, this is the point behind Binance’s varied trading options, the platform can be used for traders wanting a fairly low-risk option as well as those who are prepared to bet on an intrinsically unpredictable market. There’s something for everyone.

Another element of Binance is that it supports peer-to-peer (P2P) trading. Users can buy and sell cryptocurrencies directly to and from each other by means of their own chosen payment methods which makes the platform even more accessible to a broader variety of traders. There are also various binance coin gambling sites available that offer a variety of options.

 

What’s Next for Binance?

 

Binance achieved great success early on, and the company seems to be following a similar trajectory into its future.

Despite some turbulence related to company founder and former CEO Changpeng Zhao towards the end of 2023, Binance has managed to flourish under the leadership of current CEO Richard Teng. According to CNBC, the company experienced an impressive 40% in corporate and institutional investment in 2024.

Already established as the largest cryptocurrency trading platform, Binance has managed to maintain its reputation as a platform that offers a broad range of features and services to traders all over the world in a secure and cost-effective manner.

With regard to the future, Binance has always done well to innovate alongside changing trends, and it seems fair to expect that under Richard Teng, there’s still plenty to come from Binance.