Binance CEO Reveals Bitcoin’s Next Big Move, Future Of Trading | Richard Teng
Binance CEO Richard Teng discusses Bitcoin's evolution from a retail-driven to institutional asset class, outlines Binance's expansion into tokenized real-world assets and traditional securities trading, and addresses regulatory challenges in Europe while reaffirming the company's commitment to compliance and global expansion.
Summary
Richard Teng, co-CEO of Binance, provides insights into the cryptocurrency and fintech landscape in this 2026 interview. He confirms that while institutional adoption has significantly increased, he still believes the four-year Bitcoin cycle remains relevant due to mining costs and scarcity dynamics. Teng notes that Binance's user base has grown from 170 million to 320 million customers over two years, with increasing institutional and sovereign participation creating a more mature and less volatile market.
A major focus is Binance's evolution into a financial super-app offering far beyond cryptocurrency. The platform now provides access to stocks, ETFs, tokenized assets, private market opportunities (such as SpaceX pre-IPO trading), and commodities. Notably, Binance accounts for 60% of SpaceX pre-IPO perpetual trading and achieved nearly $6 billion in trading volume on SpaceX's first trading day. The company recently launched BTOs (Binance Tokenized Offerings), which are one-to-one backed tokenized securities trading 24/7, with approximately 50% of trading occurring outside US market hours.
Teng emphasizes the transformative potential of blockchain and AI convergence, particularly in financial infrastructure. He highlights how tokenized assets enable 24/7 trading, atomic settlement, and enhanced liquidity compared to traditional 9-to-5 markets. The company has accumulated $800 million AUM in its stocks offering within a month, with 80% of stock traders from emerging markets and many under 25 years old, indicating Binance's role in providing financial access to previously excluded populations.
On regulation, Teng addresses the significant EU setback where Binance withdrew its Mika license application from Greece after initially receiving indication of approval. He emphasizes Binance is not leaving Europe and is pursuing authorization with other EU member states. He argues that wise regulators should license compliant crypto companies to maintain oversight rather than forcing them to operate in gray zones. Teng notes Binance spends 25% of revenue on compliance and is the only global exchange with a home regulator through Abu Dhabi's ADGM authority.
Regarding US re-entry, Teng indicates the company is awaiting the Clarity Act to provide regulatory framework clarity, noting that diverse federal-state regulatory interpretation creates complexity. He acknowledges lobbying against Binance's US entry from existing players who would face fee compression competition.
On allegations regarding Iran sanctions evasion, Teng states that Binance has pursued lawsuits against publications making these claims and works closely with law enforcement. He argues the allegations are unfounded, pointing out that after tracking fund flows across multiple hops to other platforms, Binance cannot be directly responsible for what happens with funds once they leave the platform. He notes illicit exposure has dropped 97% from early 2024 to mid-2025.
Teng concludes by discussing Singapore's transformation from an agricultural society to a global financial center, attributing success to long-term strategic planning, stable leadership, favorable monetary policy management through managed floating exchange rates, and deliberate ecosystem development including international schools, parks, and major financial institution recruitment.
Key Insights
- Teng argues that the four-year Bitcoin cycle remains valid despite increased institutional adoption because mining costs and scarcity dynamics operate independently of retail versus institutional participation patterns
- Binance achieved 60% of global pre-IPO perpetual trading volume on SpaceX and generated nearly $6 billion in trading volume on SpaceX's first trading day, establishing the platform as the dominant price discovery venue before the company's actual IPO
- Approximately 80% of Binance's stock trading users are from emerging markets with 25% below age 25, and 40% of trades are below $100 with 70% daily users being net buyers, indicating Binance provides market access to populations previously excluded from traditional financial markets
- Teng contends that regulators should license compliant crypto companies rather than force them into gray zones, arguing this allows proper oversight, supervision, and cooperation to protect users—a position he characterizes as the view of 'wise and smart regulators'
- Teng argues that illicit fund exposure through Binance has dropped 97% from early 2024 to mid-2025, and claims that attributing funds to Binance across multiple hops to other platforms is 'totally unfair' since money is fungible and Binance has no control over downstream platform activity
Topics
Transcript
[0:00] We're discussing Bitcoin, the entire crypto landscape, and what's next for Binance with co-CEO Richard Tang. Uh Richard is going to be discussing with us his outlook for uh the Bitcoin landscape, as well as what users can expect on Binance, the world's largest crypto exchange for the remainder of 2026. Welcome back to the show, Richard. Good to see you. Many things to discuss today. >> Great to see you again, David. >> I'd like to ask you first about the Bitcoin um investment landscape. Several guests on my show have been talking about how Bitcoin has fundamentally [0:31] changed from a retail asset to an institutional asset and because of that maybe the four-year cycle has been…
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