CEO Changpeng Zhao announced earlier Monday that Binance (CRYPTO: BNB) has temporarily paused withdrawals of Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) as a result of severe market instability and a stuck on-chain transaction.
This is only impacting the Bitcoin network. You can still withdraw Bitcoin on other networks like BEP-20.
— CZ 🔶 Binance (@cz_binance) June 13, 2022
Likely this is going to take a bit longer to fix than my initial estimate. More updates soon. Thanks for your patience and understanding🙏
What Happened: Zhao initially said the stuck transaction would take 30 minutes to settle. He then announced there may be further delays while reassuring investors the funds are "SAFU" (Secure Asset Fund for Users).
The aforementioned is an insurance fund for emergencies created to shield investor funds. In market climates of extremely volatility and instability, cryptocurrency exchanges have a track record of performance troubles.
Why It’s Important: As cryptocurrency markets bleed, with Bitcoin trading at $23,300, there is panic among investors.
A halt on Bitcoin withdrawals on the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange further fuels the fear and uncertainty plaguing the markets.
The Last Word: Though the stuck on-chain transaction is only affecting the Bitcoin network, leaving withdrawals on other networks such as BEP-20 unaffected, the technical problems only add to investors' concerns Monday.
Photo courtesy of Binance.