Traders Blame Binance, But Did Coinbase Also Amplify The Market Crash?

Core Insights - The cryptocurrency market experienced significant turmoil following President Trump's announcement of new tariffs, with Binance becoming a central focus due to its role as a liquidity engine [1] - Users faced exacerbated losses due to Binance's cross-margin system, which linked all assets in a trader's account, leading to total account liquidations from a single margin call [2] Group 1: Binance's Operational Issues - During the market sell-off, Binance's interface reportedly froze, preventing traders from closing or hedging their positions, which contributed to increased losses [2] - The structural weaknesses in Binance's system led to widespread user anger, with accusations that the exchange profited from market volatility through liquidation fees [3] Group 2: Speculation on Market Manipulation - An analysis by on-chain researcher YQ indicated that three Binance-listed assets lost their pegs simultaneously during an internal pricing update, suggesting potential coordinated trading rather than random panic [4] - The estimated financial impact of these coordinated trades could range from $800 million to $1.2 billion extracted from the market [5] - While definitive proof of coordination is lacking, the evidence raises reasonable suspicion of a calculated attack, as the timing and profit patterns align with such an event [6] Group 3: Broader Market Context - Concurrently, blockchain data revealed notable movements from Coinbase, the largest US exchange, which deepened suspicions of market coordination during the downturn [7]