Binance has announced the suspension of support for deposits and withdrawals of the USD-pegged stablecoin USDC via the TRON blockchain network. This decision, effective from April 5 at 0200 GMT, means customers will no longer be able to utilize the Tron network for USDC transactions on Binance.
Stablecoins are digital assets engineered to maintain a steady value, typically backed by traditional currencies and operable on various blockchain platforms. Last month, Circle, a Boston-based cryptocurrency firm, declared its discontinuation of USDC token creation on the Tron blockchain, citing alignment with its commitment to preserving USDC’s integrity, transparency, and security.
Despite this change, users can still trade USDC on Binance. However, the ability to deposit and withdraw USDC via Tron will be affected. Binance assured users that USDC transactions via other supported networks remain unaffected.
Tron, as of now, has not responded to Reuters’ request for comment. Notably, Tron’s founder, Justin Sun, faced legal action from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) last year, alleging Sun’s involvement in artificially inflating trading volumes and selling Tron tokens without proper registration. Sun refuted these claims, asserting the lack of merit in the SEC charges.
USDC, with approximately $32.1 billion in circulation, ranks as the eighth largest cryptocurrency and the second largest stablecoin, following Tether. Most USDC transactions occur on the Ethereum blockchain, as per Circle’s data. Prior to Circle’s decision to halt Tron-based USDC support, around $335 million worth of USDC was hosted on the Tron network.
In a separate report last November, Reuters highlighted Tron’s surpassing of Bitcoin as a platform for cryptocurrency transfers associated with groups designated as terror organizations by countries like Israel and the United States. In response, a Tron spokesperson clarified that the platform does not control the actions of its users and denied any connection to the groups identified by Israel.
