Binance Asia Services Ltd., the Singapore entity of Changpeng Zhao, has withdrawn its application for a license to run a cryptocurrency exchange, the company said.

With that, Binance ends an effort to operate a regulated cryptocurrency bourse under the oversight of the Monetary Authority of Singapore. The fiat-to-crypto trading platform Binance.sg will wind down operations and close by Feb 13, the affiliate of the world’s largest crypto bourse said in an emailed statement.

Binance Asia was among some 170 firms that applied to MAS for a permit to provide cryptocurrency services last year.

Binance’s withdrawal from the Singapore process will likely end speculation about the city-state emerging as the global headquarters for the bourse.

Zhao, who’s been based in Singapore for the past two years, has offered mixed signals on where he may base the firm, saying places in Europe and the Middle East offered pro-crypto alternatives along with Singapore.

The 44-year-old said last month he’d bought his first-ever home in Dubai to show a commitment to the jurisdiction he described as "very pro-crypto,” along with France. Binance has also revived plans to register in the UK, Zhao told The Telegraph.

Founded in China in 2017, Binance Holdings Ltd. hasn’t set up a global base yet. Instead, Zhao has incorporated firms in locations where Binance operates.

Binance Asia has taken into account "strategic, commercial and developmental considerations globally” in its decision to withdraw its Singapore application, the company said.

"We always put our users first, so our decision to close Binance.sg was not taken lightly,” Richard Teng, chief executive officer of the Singapore entity said. "I am grateful to the Monetary Authority of Singapore for its ongoing assistance to Binance Asia Services and we look forward to future opportunities to work together.”

Instead, Binance Asia will refocus its operations toward the blockchain technology, according to the statement.

 - Bloomberg