WAVES plunges 24% after Binance delisting announcement

The price of WAVES sharply dropped from $2.35 to $1.8 after crypto exchange Binance said in a blog post it would no longer support the token.

Waves, a blockchain network founded by Ukrainian-born entrepreneur Sasha Ivanov, is under pressure as Binance cited the token’s failure to meet “high levels of standard and industry requirements” as a reason for its delisting.

In addition to WAVES, Binance says in a blog announcement it will also cease trading on all spot and margin pairs for OmiseGO (OMG), Wrapped NXM (WNXM), and NEM (XEM) on Jun. 17 at 03:00 UTC. Following the news, WAVES price plunged over 24% and is now trading at $1.80, according to CoinMarketCap.

This delisting follows Binance.US’s earlier decision in February to remove WAVES for similar reasons. The token has also been delisted by Korean exchanges Upbit and Bithumb due to concerns about its associated stablecoin, Neutrino USD (USDN), losing its peg to the U.S. dollar.

In mid-2023, Ivanov revealed in an interview that Waves Labs, the company behind the Waves blockchain, had been hacked for six months, causing significant financial damage and compromising internal data. Ivanov claimed that hackers, allegedly connected to the Russian mafia, infiltrated the firm’s management software and attempted extortion.

That hack added to Waves’ troubles, which also include a $530 million loss from their lending protocol, Vires Finance. Ivanov denies accusations of his involvement in the scheme.