Crypto exchange Binance and its CEO Changpeng Zhao are making headlines once again as news of the company’s acquisition moves hit the industry. According to recent news, Binance acquired a 41% stake on Korean crypto exchange Gopax. The deal was originally scheduled to be revealed last year, and it involved Binance buying the stock holding from Lee Jun-hang, Gopax’s top stakeholder. BNB, Binance’s native token, took the news to heart with a weekly gain of 5.5%. As of this writing, BNB is trading at $255, data from Coingecko shows. Related Reading: ApeCoin: Will January See The End of APE’s Recovery? Binance And South Korea, A Mixed History This has not been the first time Binance entered a business venture in Korea. In the period of 2020 to 2021, Binance KR trading pairs and a hard shutdown of the service in the country was completed. This was due to tight crypto regulation in the country. Gopax was hit hard after FTX collapsed. During this time, the exchange experienced a liquidity problem forcing the Korean exchange to suspend payments. With the onset of Binance capital flowing into the exchange, we can expect Gopax to rebound from last year’s disaster. Image: Cryptopolitan Binance, on the other hand, promised to comply with local regulation as they partnered with the port city of Busan in August of last year. This partnership will develop the city’s blockchain infrastructure for its future city-backed digital asset exchange. What Does This Mean To BNB? With almost no barrier now, this development should push through in the coming weeks as the acquisition is being finalized. With this in mind, Binance’s presence in South Korea would further cement the company as a major player in the centralized exchange market. However, one can’t be too sure of the future. Nearly a month ago, a Reddit post regarding Binance’s supposed audit exposed a concerning development. Image: Business2Community According to a post, the “audit” was not actually an audit but only an Agreed-Upon-Procedure (AUP) which does not guarantee the truth of its proof-of-reserves. Related Reading: Cronos (CRO) Up 4% In Last Week Amid Recession Fears Crypto total market cap at $775 billion on the daily chart | Chart: TradingView.com Not to mention that right now, the company is under fire from the SEC as it aggressively tries to acquire Voyager Digital. Whether this acquisition pushes through or not, BNB bulls are poised to breach the $281 price resistance level. However, with the token being highly correlated with Ethereum, we might see BNB drop if macroeconomic indicators reveal a worsening situation. For now, investors and traders of BNB should consolidate their gains at $252. If ever the bears claw back their spot in the market, BNB can fall back to $240 for a reliable support range. With the Consumer Price Index (CPI) data being rolled out next week, investors and traders should be prepared to deal with volatility as any movement in ETH will determine whether BNB will go up or down. -Featured Image: CPA Practice Advisor
