There are historical discussions that are evolving, says Ondarra.
Binance’s current goals are to integrate cryptocurrencies into the daily lives of its users.
During the celebration of LABITCONF 2025 in Buenos Aires, CriptoNoticias had the opportunity to speak with Andrés Ondarra, general manager of the Binance exchange for Argentina and the Southern Cone. In a context where the adoption of bitcoin (BTC) and cryptocurrencies continues to expand in the region, the executive offered his perspective on the maturation of the ecosystem and, fundamentally, on the intersection between decentralized technology and state regulatory frameworks.
For Ondarra, who has a career of almost two decades in traditional banking, before turning to the digital assets sector, The historical discussion about the total separation between the State and the digital currency ecosystem is evolving.
When asked about how the original spirit of bitcoiners – often associated with the independence of money from the State – is combined with increasing regulation, the executive was blunt in pointing out that collaboration is necessary for massive growth.
“I believe it is part of the industry’s development process,” Ondarra explained and added:
«If the industry [de las criptomonedas] wants to expand and wants to continue growing from the point of view of reaching new audiences, new users, it has to have a mature and dynamic interaction with players in the financial ecosystem, both from the traditional financial world and regulators or governments.
Andrés Ondarra, Binance manager for Argentina and the Southern Cone.
Under this perspectivethe dichotomy between a free market and a regulated one seems to be losing validity—in Ondarra’s opinion—in the face of the reality of institutional adoption. “I think the debates between regulation and non-regulation are beginning to be a little more anachronistic,” said the executive. According to their analysis, this interaction has allowed “exponential development” by integrating with more supervised sectors.
Ondarra highlights regulation as a tool of trust
Beyond the philosophical debate, Ondarra highlights the practical usefulness of regulations for the common user. In identifying barriers to mass adoption, the manager pointed to a combination of lack of education and a perceived need for greater security.
“The maturation of the industry requires transactional processes to be safer, more reliable,” he stated. In this sense, “regulation will help people understand what they are doing, feel safe, and feel protected by a regulatory framework.”
This year, according to the executive, has been key due to the entry of institutional actors that have legitimized the sector: “Many sectors of the traditional financial world began to enter cryptocurrencies because there was a clearer global regulatory framework.”
Binance seeks to offer infrastructure to “live in crypto”
Regarding Binance’s role in this scenario, Ondarra emphasized that The current mission of the exchange is the development of infrastructure that facilitates the daily use of digital assetsbeyond mere speculation or investment. The goal is for users to find real use in their daily lives.
“Every day you will be able to live your entire financial experience much more on a platform like Binance,” he assured, detailing that users will be able to “save,” “invest,” have “products with passive returns” and be “exposed to dollars through stable currencies.”
The executive highlighted recent products launched in Argentina, such as QR code payments and ramps to deposit funds from bank accounts, as examples of this integration. Added to this is the recent incorporation of Pix (Brazilian payment system) for Argentines traveling to the neighboring country.
“Really what we want to do is make people realize that they find in cryptocurrencies a financial alternative that is probably equal to or even superior to what they were used to,” he added.
A future of exponential growth
Looking to the future, Ondarra outlined a parallelism between the current state of cryptocurrencies and other past technological revolutions. “Probably in the next 5 years, in the medium or long term future, this industry is going to have a size that is going to be substantially larger than the current one,” he projected, comparing the phenomenon with the emergence of the Internet or smartphones.
With a corporate goal of reaching one billion users globally, the Binance manager envisions a world “much more ‘cryptonized’ in the future than what we have today,” driven by diversified portfolios and everyday use cases yet to be discovered.
Finally, Ondarra invited readers to maintain “intellectual curiosity” in the face of what defined as a “disruptive moment in global finance through this technological paradigm shift.”