Changpeng Zhao Makes Stablecoin Prediction Following SEC’s Binance USD (BUSD) Enforcement Action

The CEO of crypto exchange giant Binance says investors may turn to non-US dollar-pegged and algorithmic stablecoins amid regulatory pressure on Binance USD (BUSD).

During a Twitter Spaces AMA on Feb. 14th, Changpeng Zhao explains why USD-pegged stablecoins are widely used.

“Stablecoins are still important. Most people’s costs are still in fiat currencies and so when they calculate returns, ROI, et cetera, when they calculate prices today, most people use US dollar prices for crypto because US dollar stablecoins are the most popular and the largest.”

Zhao’s statement comes following reports that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) considers initiating an enforcement action against crypto firm Paxos, which issues and operates BUSD in partnership with Binance, for violating investor protection laws.

The New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) also ordered Paxos to stop minting the stablecoin.

Zhao says the popularity of US-pegged stablecoins may decline as regulators clamp down on these assets.

“I think given the current pressure and current stances taken by the regulators on the US dollar-based stablecoins I think that the industry will probably move away to a non-US dollar-based stablecoin and maybe also back to algorithmic (algo) stablecoins.”

He says the development is likely related to or started around the time that the TerraUSD (USTC) stablecoin collapsed, which was further exacerbated by the crash of the FTX exchange.

“I think basically this is going to force industry players to look for other options, non-USD-based and more algo stablecoins…

I think as a result of this, we will probably see more Euro-based or Japanese yen, Singapore dollar-based stablecoins. It’s actually prompted us to look for more options in different places. At the same time, we’re also looking at algo stablecoins.”

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