Binance And CZ Face UK Derivatives Suit

Lawsuit Targets Alleged Retail Derivatives Sales

The claimants allege Binance sold or promoted derivatives to UK retail traders from around September 13, 2019. The products named in the filing include leveraged tokens, cryptocurrency futures, options and margin trading products. The legal argument is that these products were sold to UK consumers without authorization and in breach of the UK’s Financial Services and Markets Act.

The filing argues the defendants violated the Act’s general prohibition on carrying out regulated activity without authorization. It also argues that promotion of the products breached UK rules on unauthorized financial promotions. The claimants are seeking recovery of money and property paid, compensation for losses and interest under the Senior Courts Act 1981.

The case centers on allegations that Binance made complex leveraged products available to ordinary UK retail investors before and around the period when UK regulators moved to restrict access to crypto derivatives. The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority formally restricted retail access to crypto derivative products in 2021, while the alleged Binance marketing and sales began in late 2019.

Binance said it plans to defend the claims through the appropriate legal process. A Binance spokesperson said, “Strict compliance with UK regulations is a top priority for Binance,” and added that the exchange remains committed to its obligations to users. Binance also said it would defend the claims “vigorously,” while reaffirming its commitment to complying with applicable laws.

Zhao stepped down as Binance CEO in November 2023 after Binance’s $4.3 billion settlement with U.S. authorities that year. Zhao pleaded guilty to money-laundering and sanctions violations tied to the U.S. case, served four months in a U.S. federal prison and later received a pardon from President Donald Trump in October 2025.

Since leaving Binance’s day-to-day leadership, Zhao has ruled out returning as CEO and has repositioned himself around education, investment and policy advisory work. Zhao has advised roughly a dozen governments on crypto regulation and asset tokenization, launched Giggle Academy as a free education platform and continued backing startups through YZi Labs, his investment firm.

The lawsuit also comes days after Binance withdrew its bid for a Greek MiCA license. Zhao said the Greek MiCA license application was “fully compliant” and close to approval before unnamed political forces “intervened.” Binance is now led by chief executive Richard Teng and has pointed to hundreds of millions of dollars in annual compliance spending as evidence that its operations have changed under current leadership.

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Binance Reports $1 Billion In Equity AUM

Separately, Binance announced on July 1, 2026, that its equity assets under management surpassed $1 billion. Binance said the milestone applies to its stock-related product line, not to broader crypto exchange balances, and shared the figure through official social media channels and its official blog.

Assets under management refers to the total market value of equity products Binance holds or manages on behalf of users. Binance’s equity AUM figure is narrower than total platform assets and does not include broader crypto holdings, crypto deposits, staking balances, reserves or other digital asset holdings. It is also separate from trading volume, because AUM measures assets held while trading volume measures transaction value over a period.

Binance launched bStocks, its tokenized asset product for US stocks, as part of a broader push to offer traditional financial instruments alongside crypto trading. The exchange tied the AUM milestone to growing user demand for equity products offered through the platform, but did not disclose the exact composition of the assets.

Several details remain unresolved. Binance did not say how much of the equity AUM consists of tokenized stocks versus other equity instruments, how the figure breaks down by geography or user segment, or what methodology it used to calculate the total. It also remains unclear whether the number is a point-in-time snapshot or an average over a period, and whether it includes unrealized gains.