Crypto prices have been on a tear for the past several months, but the past week has been the clearest sign of a correction to climbing prices, though many see news of President Biden’s adjustment to the hikes on the capital gains tax as the most apparent reason for the market’s slide as investors cash out hoping their gains won’t be reached by a retroactive application of the rules.
Binance launched the U.S. arm in 2019. But the company’s main exchange, initially based in China, blocked Americans in an effort to stay on the right side of regulators.

The NYDFS is known for being especially rigorous in its approach to cryptocurrency businesses compared to other state regulators, requiring an exacting review of capital requirements and policies regarding money laundering, fraud, capitalization, consumer protection, and cybersecurity. It's an unpopular approach among many in the crypto industry, some of whom have even opted to pull business out of New York rather than bear the high cost of compliance.
Mistakes like this happen throughout finance when, for instance, traders mess up details of their intended trades, entering the wrong price or order size. An erroneously large trade, as one example, can overwhelm an exchange's order book, leading to a quick and massive decline. The entire U.S. stock market famously flash crashed back in May 2010, though equities have mostly avoided trouble since that era.