Bitstamp to suspend trading of major altcoins for US users

Cryptocurrency exchange Bitstamp will suspend trading of Axie Infinity (AXS), Chiliz (CHZ), Decentraland (MANA), Polygon (MATIC), Near (NEAR), Sandbox (SAND) and Solana (SOL) for customers residing in the United States beginning Aug. 29.

According to the Aug. 8 announcement, trading of the seven aforementioned cryptocurrencies will soon become unavailable for trading for U.S. customers due to “recent developments.” While the firm did not specify the reason for their suspension, all seven tokens are alleged by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to be unregistered securities in its complaints against cryptocurrency exchanges Binance and Coinbase. Bitstamp wrote: 

“We kindly request our users to promptly execute any desired buy or sell orders involving the affected assets before August 29, 2023. After this deadline, trading activities related to AXS, CHZ, MANA, MATIC, NEAR, SAND, and SOL will be permanently disabled on the Bitstamp platform.”

Although trading will soon be halted, Bitstamp says users can still hold the seven tokens in their accounts and withdraw them at any time. The SEC’s allegations against the tokens have not yet been proven in a court of law. However, other fintech firms, such as Revolut, have voluntarily delisted them for U.S. residents amid the SEC litigation against Binance and Coinbase. The Sandbox has also begun mandating Know Your Customer verification for SAND staking after the event. The SEC currently alleges that 68 cryptocurrencies are securities. 

Founded in 2011 and now headquartered in Luxembourg, Bitstamp is currently the world’s oldest cryptocurrency exchange. The platform offers around 30 coins and tokens for trading. Approximately $164 million worth of digital currencies were traded on Bitstamp in the past 24 hours.

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