• Binance said that some of Multichain’s cross-chain routes are unavailable due to force majeure.
• Binance is already gearing up for the next bull run and expects the trading volumes to surge over the next few months.

The world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange Binance recently suspended deposits and withdrawals for eight altcoins linked to the bridging platform Multicoin. In its announcement, Binance said that it would be halting the support for Spell Token (SPELL) via the Avalanche C-Chain, Alchemy Pay (ACH) via the BNB Smart Chain, as well as six other low-cap altcoin projects through Ethereum, and Fantom.

Following the attack on the Multichain Bridge in May, Binance had already suspended the tokens. The attack left some routes on its bridge unavailable. Binance hasn’t specifically mentioned the reason behind halting support for these cryptocurrencies. However, it has a brief reference to the incident in its announcement. The crypto exchange noted:

While most of the cross-chain routes of Multichain protocol are functioning well, some of the cross-chain routes are unavailable due to force majeure, and the time for service to resume is unknown. After service is restored, pending transactions will be credited automatically. Multichain will compensate users who are affected during this process, and the compensation plan will be announced later.

Binance Chief Expects Strong Trading Volumes in Coming Months

In a Twitter Space “ask me anything” event on Wednesday, July 5, Binance chief Changpeng Zhao said that he’s readying the platform for some increased trading volume that he expects to surge over the next few months.

CZ said that he’s expecting the trading activity to shoot up in the next six to 18 months. “If we look at historical patterns, we want to be prepared for higher volumes,” he added.

According to Zhao, trading volumes have started to increase in recent weeks, signaling a positive shift from the challenging period that began when the FTX exchange collapsed last November 2022. Several factors have contributed to this recent surge, such as the introduction of new applications for spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and the anticipation of the upcoming Bitcoin halving event, expected to occur next year in May 2024.

CZ Bullish on the Crypto Market

Zhao said that he has been seeing a bull run in Bitcoin every four years and thus, the next major bull run shall happen in 2025.  “The year after Bitcoin halving is usually the bull year,” he added.

The Binance chief said that it’s hard to predict the future, however, he added that he continues to stay bullish over the longer term. “We’re still very early. I think the industry still has a lot of room to grow,” Zhao said. “So I’m always bullish. I’m a builder, so I always have a positive outlook on things.”

However, even if the bear market persists, Zhao reassured that Binance has the resilience and endurance to withstand it. Binance is currently facing legal challenges from U.S. regulators, including the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Securities and Exchange Commission. They have filed lawsuits against the exchange and Zhao, accusing them of violating federal laws. Regarding these lawsuits, Zhao stated that Binance aims to find a solution that is prompt, fair, and agreeable to all parties involved.