Binance despite ban: How crypto survives crackdowns worldwide
When governments try to shut down Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange by volume. Also known as BNB Chain platform, it enables trading, staking, and DeFi access across borders. The bans don’t stick. Not because users are reckless, but because crypto doesn’t need a central hub to keep running. From Bolivia to Thailand, when exchanges get blocked, people find alternatives—P2P networks, local platforms, or just direct wallet-to-wallet trades. The real story isn’t about Binance being banned. It’s about how crypto keeps flowing even when the system tries to stop it.
Look at Thailand, a country that banned foreign P2P platforms in 2025. Overnight, users lost access to Bybit and OKX. But trading didn’t vanish—it shifted. People started using local licensed exchanges, or simply traded directly with neighbors using Telegram groups and cash deposits. Meanwhile, Bolivia, which once outlawed all crypto, reversed its ban in 2024. Within six months, $294 million in crypto changed hands. Why? Because people needed it—for remittances, for inflation protection, for basic financial freedom. Crypto isn’t about the platform. It’s about the need behind it.
When a government bans an exchange, they’re not banning the technology. They’re banning one access point. The real infrastructure—the blockchain, the wallets, the smart contracts—runs on thousands of nodes across the globe. That’s why decentralized finance, or DeFi, became the fallback when centralized exchanges got locked down. People moved to DEXs like SpartaDEX or SynFutures. They used stablecoins like EURC to hold value. They staked ETH through liquid derivatives to earn yield without relying on any single company. The bans didn’t kill crypto. They just pushed users to build smarter, more resilient systems.
And it’s not just about Binance. The same pattern shows up everywhere: Tunisia’s total ban, India’s heavy taxes on mining, Iceland’s regulated but limited exchange. Each case proves one thing—people will find a way. The question isn’t whether Binance will survive bans. It’s how many more governments will realize that trying to control decentralized money is like trying to control water. You can build dams, but the flow always finds a path.
Below, you’ll find real stories from places where crypto didn’t die—it adapted. From banned platforms to hidden workarounds, from regulated loopholes to outright reversals. These aren’t theoretical debates. These are live experiments in financial sovereignty. And they’re happening right now.
- By Eva van den Bergh
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- 15 Nov 2025
Why 600,000 Bangladeshis Use Binance Despite Government Crypto Ban
Over 600,000 Bangladeshis use Binance despite a government crypto ban, turning to crypto for remittances, savings, and trade. This is how they do it-and why the ban isn't working.