Let's go now to Abu Dhabi, where I'm delighted to be joined by the CEO of the world's biggest crypto currency exchange by trading volume, that's Finances, Richard Tang. Richard, thank you so much for making time for us. We've seen Donald Trump picking pretty crypto friendly picks in the form of his aizar and in the form of his sec chair. Where does that likely change in the regulatory stamps in the US leave you at binance.
Well, I do think that if you look at twenty twenty four is a landmark. Yeah, right, So if you help people twenty four bit coin will give one hundred thousand, they'll be etf being approved for bigcoin, TM, Solana and several others, and as well as institutions. I mean, the largest sm manager in the world, black Rock has conference skeptic to deliver. I think people will not believe you if I come to the end of twenty twenty four orders have come true.
We have now a very crypto friendly president in.
The States and extremely smart strategy appointing AI in crypto Za on that front, because this too represents the most innovative technology for the future, and countries.
Will do extremely well. I mean Awadawd this week the capital of capital.
Again, Abu w and Ue has been very foresightful in that front to start investing AI blockchain to move those rarely on. So we are seeing seeing the results of all those deployment in Abu w and Ue now. So countries will do very very well to continue to focus on this two technology, and we will continue to focus on serving our fast expanding user base. Are closer toteen million users globally now seventy million onboard year alone, so they're very excited with the junior here.
But of course finances under monitorship by the U sdo J and the US Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. Would you be looking to ask the Trump administration to shorten or terminate the monitorships given the President elects kind of preference, as we say, for looser crypto regulation.
Well, I mean any of those discussions. I think it's new.
I think I believe that compliance is the way to go, right, So we have finance has always been a user for this organization. By going forward, given that regulations is going to be much clearer throughout the world, we have the ability to invest very heavily in compland space and want
to make compliance and competitive advantage for ourselves. So last year alone, we invested two hundred and thirteen million US dollars just on our compliance program, which is a more than thirty percent increased compatitor before and this year you go up even more.
Got the most licensed and regulated.
Exchange globally now with more than twenty different jurisdiction than license and regulate US more recently in places exciting places like India and Argentina.
So we are working with.
Global policy makers lawmakers to really support the cryptal journey, to support the cryptal deployment, and we continue to work very closely US monitors on that on that front to continue to see whether the areas that we can enhance the work have further I think.
Is a good competitive advantage.
We are able to invest in places that our competitors are not being able to invest in.
Well, yeah, are you looking to re enter that US market then more forcefully? And if they introduce a stable coin framework, would you be reviving big binance USD B USD or would we launching a similar token?
Perhaps globally we are supporting crypto adoption, so on different fronts right, so stable coins, other innovation in this space, cross water payment, etcetera, etcetera. Whether we re entered the US market, I think there's a premature discussion. As of now, we are focusing on our global deployment. We have growing very quickly and very happy with the progress or what we're seeing.
I think this is alone.
If you look at the net influence into finance, it crosses more into the billin right. If you put our net influence versus the ten largest exchange the next ten largest exchange pull together, we are forty percent much more than the ten largest exchange pull together. So you can
see the phenomenon and growth. We have seen a lot of new institutions being onboarded and with the US going to announce a big coin strategic reserve and Brazil considering it, I do believe that many other countries around the world will start to deploy on that front. So it's not only the countries. It's a softwagn rail of funds, institutions, foundations and down and sign up with individual so.
They're going to start relocating this space. So the future is extremely bright.
Well, so you've been in post for just over a year now, Richard, I wonder what you would say the biggest changes you've implemented in that time and as you look head, are you planning to add more independent advisors to your board for example?
No, we have a strong board of directors today.
We have bought actors, are seven three independent directors with independent chairman. So we are in a very good place in terms of corporate structure. I think we have really moved from a founder CEO led company to a board led company. So the senior management of the company work very closely with the border of directors to chart the strategy and the deployment of the company going forward. Right, and we have continued to move from strength to strength.
We have not only focused on our investors our users. We invest a lot into security and I mentioned compliance and all those are key areas. I mean this yet alone, you'll see plenty of exchanges being hacked around the world, right, So Japan, Bazarex in India, INDO decks in Indonesia, BTC and the least goes on is an area that we
focus a lot of attention to. I mean, we are the exchange that set us like more than one billion just to compensate users just into us in the event of antous event of the security head right on that front, the in the form of Safoo fund, So we go beyond what many regulators prescribe in terms of user protection and helping our users detect the fraud and scams on that front, helping them two point four billion in terms of potential.
Losses just for the first half of this year.
So these are areas that it pays a lot of attention to and we're part of all those things that were time.
Just finally, Richard, as you mentioned you're there at RBW Finance Week, I wonder what opportunities you see specifically in the Middle East region.
Well, it's huge. So just in newear loone cryptal adoption is close to forty percent. I think the same team is repeated throughout the media, is right. So our the ab was when our CEO at law Gologle Market we are one of the first in the world to introduce a crypto regulatory framework togethern this sector in twenty eighteen, right, so we are quite ahead of the game then, and you can see how would that be continue to grow up by leaps and bounds on the blockchain crypto as
well as the AI space. Right so, I think that same team is repeated throughout the media. Is in Barian, in Dubai, and the rest of the media is you know, very young demographics, tech savvy people understand crypto so and there are many parts of media. Is South Africa region where financial inclusion is slow, which makes the crypto becomes the only means that people can make payments, can get access to the bank sort of payment system. They can have a style wealth in the form of table coins
of crypto, and they're much better. I traveled the region quite extensively and better people come up to tiny in the last few years going through hyperinflationary situation where they have domestic fat currency depreciated sharply.
The our family wellbeing is preserved by holding.
On to crypto and stable coins, right so I have many of these stories repeated trout to me the central of the world when I visit many of these countries.
Okay, thank you so much, Richard Tang, CEO of Finance. Lovely to have you with us on the program from Abu Dhabi Finance Week