Binance Delists Bitcoin SV, CEO Calls Craig Wright a 'Fraud'

Binance is delisting bitcoin SV days after CEO Changpeng Zhao called Craig Wright, the fork's creator, a "fraud."

AccessTimeIconApr 15, 2019 at 2:50 p.m. UTC
Updated Aug 18, 2021 at 11:11 p.m. UTC

Presented By Icon

Election 2024 coverage presented by

Stand with crypto

Binance, the world's largest crypto exchange by reported volume, will delist bitcoin SV (BSV) after a week of controversy around the cryptocurrency's creator, Craig Wright.

The exchange announced Monday that it would be delisting all BSV trading pairs on April 22, just days after Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ) threatened to do so if Wright did not cease attacks on Twitter users who are claiming he is not Satoshi Nakamoto, the pseudonymous creator of bitcoin.

  • Bitcoin Mining in the U.S. Will Become 'a Lot More Decentralized': Core Scientific CEO
    13:18
    Bitcoin Mining in the U.S. Will Become 'a Lot More Decentralized': Core Scientific CEO
  • Binance to Discontinue Its Nigerian Naira Services After Government Scrutiny
    05:10
    Binance to Discontinue Its Nigerian Naira Services After Government Scrutiny
  • The first video of the year 2024
    04:07
    The first video of the year 2024
  • The last regression video of the year 3.67.0
    40:07
    The last regression video of the year 3.67.0
  • In Binance's announcement, the exchange says "we periodically review each digital asset we list to ensure that it continues to meet the high level of standard we expect," citing a number of factors it weighs.

    These include the commitment of a team to the project, the level and quality of its development activity, its network and smart contract stability, the level of public communication, responsiveness to periodic due diligence requests, evidence of unethical or fraudulent conduct and its contribution to the crypto ecosystem.

    However, it is likely that BSV is being deleted at least in part due to Wright's attacks on Twitter user hodlonaut (who started the Lightning Network "torch") and other individuals. Specifically, Wright placed a bounty on hodlonaut's identity after the latter claimed Wright is not Satoshi. CZ said Binance would delist BSV if Wright continued these attacks.

    Wright has for the last several years claimed he is the person behind the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto, but his evidence for this claim has been widely disputed.

    In a series of follow-up tweets, CZ said "Craig Wright is a fraud," that "the real Satoshi can digitally sign any message to prove it," and that doing so would be simple.

    Wright has sent legal cease-and-desist letters to other individuals claiming he is not Satoshi, including Peter McCormack, the host of the "What Bitcoin Did" podcast.

    Binance will continue to support BSV withdrawals until July 22.

    Later Monday, ShapeShift CEO and longtime crypto entrepreneur Erik Voorhees announced that his crypto-to-crypto exchange would also delist bitcoin SV, for the same reasons. "We stand with Binance and CZ's sentiments," Voorhees tweeted. BSV will be removed from ShapeShift in 48 hours, he said.

    Another influential exchange, San Francisco-based Kraken, indicated it is at least considering delisting BSV, asking Twitter users in a poll whether it should do so.

    Disclosure

    Please note that our privacy policy, terms of use, cookies, and do not sell my personal information have been updated.

    CoinDesk is an award-winning media outlet that covers the cryptocurrency industry. Its journalists abide by a strict set of editorial policies. CoinDesk has adopted a set of principles aimed at ensuring the integrity, editorial independence and freedom from bias of its publications. CoinDesk is part of the Bullish group, which owns and invests in digital asset businesses and digital assets. CoinDesk employees, including journalists, may receive Bullish group equity-based compensation. Bullish was incubated by technology investor Block.one.


    Learn more about Consensus 2024, CoinDesk's longest-running and most influential event that brings together all sides of crypto, blockchain and Web3. Head to consensus.coindesk.com to register and buy your pass now.