Coinbase, Binance Being Probed by US Authorities as Part of New Integrity Initiative

Eric T. Schneiderman, Attorney General for the state of New York, recently commenced proceedings for a major probe that will see many of the top cryptocurrency exchanges operating within the state being scrutinized for their daily trade activities.

In a widespread effort to clamp down on illegal money laundering issues as well to safeguard investor and consumer interests, Schneiderman announced that 13 big-name cryptocurrency exchanges would be scrutinized and examined in relation to their activities pertaining to Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, etc.

As per the new Virtual Markets Integrity Initiative, the Attorney General has issued letters to many exchanges including Coinbase, Binance, Gemini, bitFlyer USA, Bitfinex, and Bitstamp.

The probe aims to introduce more transparency within this emerging market sector as well as to make the entire process of buying/selling digital assets more streamlined.

"With cryptocurrencies on the rise, consumers in New York and across the country have a right to transparency and accountability when they invest their money. Yet too often, consumers don't have the basic facts they need to assess the fairness, integrity, and security of these trading platforms."

He went on to add that by implementing this new initiative, the government will be able to promote a higher level of accountability within the virtual currency marketplace, thereby allowing investors and consumers to be more relaxed when operating within this volatile domain.

While this latest step is aimed primarily at protecting the financial interests of investors within the state of New York, the cross-border nature of cryptocurrencies means that the result of such an investigation could have far-reaching and more profound effects for the crypto community at large.

With IMF head Christine Lagarde recently calling for more uniform regulations within the crypto space, such steps indicate the willingness of governments in the west to adopt alt-assets as well as their underlying technology, the blockchain.

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