'Bitcoin, Ethereum remained most traded cryptos amid stock market crash'

Cryptocurrencies, especially bitcoin, are back in the limelight following the return of Donald Trump at the White House. Bader Al Kalooti, MENASAT head of growth & operations at Binance, shares his views on the road ahead for cryptocurrencies, cybersecurity, and compliance issues for crypto exchanges in an email interview with Kumar Gaurav. Edited excerpts:

How has the trading in cryptocurrencies been in the last 6–8 months amid the stock market crash and the rise of gold? Which coins found takers?

Despite corrections in traditional equities and a renewed focus on gold as a store of value, the crypto market has remained active, albeit with regional variations in the last 6 – 8 months. Globally and in India, bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) remained the most traded assets due to their market dominance and established use cases, while stable coins like Tether also saw significant traction as volatility hedges. This is largely because BTC is viewed by many as a long-term store of value akin to digital gold, especially in times of macroeconomic uncertainty, while ETH remains the backbone of decentralised finance (DeFi) and smart contract development, driving much of the utility and innovation in the crypto space.

 

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Some analysts believe that BTC needs to decouple from a declining NASDAQ to prove its safe haven store-of-value status like gold. Do you agree?

The narrative around BTC as "digital gold" is one that has gained momentum, especially during inflationary periods. However, data over the last few years shows that BTC’s price action has often been correlated with high-growth tech stocks, particularly during periods of broader market stress. This is likely because many institutional investors treat crypto as part of a risk-on portfolio allocation.

 

That said, over longer cycles, BTC has shown the potential to behave differently, especially in economies with high remittance demand. Whether BTC fully decouples from traditional markets is yet to be seen.

How do you see long-term adoption of cryptocurrencies, including institutional investments, influencing the market's recovery and growth?

Long-term adoption will be a cornerstone of the crypto market’s sustainability. Over the last few years, we have seen growing institutional interest from hedge funds and asset managers to payment processors and even public companies integrating blockchain solutions. This trend brings not just capital but also deeper due diligence, governance, and infrastructure development. In India, we have seen growing interest in blockchain innovation, particularly in sectors like digital identity and supply chain.

What are your views on altcoins and meme coins?

Altcoins represent a wide spectrum of use cases from smart contracts and scaling solutions to decentralised finance (DeFi) and gaming. Each project brings a different value proposition, and some have strong development ecosystems that contribute meaningfully to the blockchain space. Meme coins, on the other hand, are often driven by social sentiment and community culture. While they may not always have strong fundamentals, they highlight the participatory nature of the crypto ecosystem. We urge caution and responsible trading particularly with highly volatile assets like meme coins.

As an exchange, what are your compliance costs as a percentage of revenue and profit (PAT)?

While the exact numbers are not publicly disclosed, our investment in compliance has grown exponentially in recent years. This includes scaling internal teams, onboarding seasoned professionals from the regulatory and law enforcement space, and implementing advanced technological frameworks like real-time transaction monitoring and AI-based fraud detection.

Typically, how much does a crypto exchange spend on cybersecurity as a percentage of revenue and PAT?

Cybersecurity is one of the largest and fastest-growing cost centers in our operational structure. Though specific numbers vary, Binance allocates nearly double-digit percentages of operational expenditure to cyber defence. This includes internal security protocols, continuous system penetration testing, multi-factor authentication, cold wallet storage, bug bounty programs, and partnerships with global cyber intelligence firms. Our SAFU (Secure Asset Fund for Users) is a prime example of our commitment to user protection, with a fund size of $1 billion in USDC, designed to safeguard users in extreme cases.