Bittrex Inc., a cryptocurrency exchange established in 2014 by three former Amazon Inc. executives, has announced that it will shut down its operations in the United States due to regulatory constraints. The company’s co-founder and US CEO, Richie Lai, stated in a tweet that it is “no longer economically viable” for them to continue operating in the current regulatory and economic environment. Until the end of April, all customer funds will be available for withdrawal, while its global business outside the US will continue to operate as usual.
The digital asset industry has come under increased regulatory scrutiny, and Bittrex is the most recent firm to leave the country as a result. In December of last year, Nexo Inc., a cryptocurrency lender, announced its exit from the US market after receiving cease-and-desist orders from several states regarding its interest-earning products.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission has launched a series of enforcement actions this year, causing concern among large and small firms in the industry, including Genesis Global Capital, Gemini Trust Co., and Kraken.
Bittrex was fined $53 million in October of last year by the Office of Foreign Assets Control and Financial Crime Enforcement Network of the US Treasury for failing to prevent customers in Iran, Cuba, and other sanctioned nations from using its platform. The company stated at the time that it was “pleased to have fully resolved this matter with OFAC and FinCEN on mutually agreeable terms.” In 2019, New York regulators advised Bittrex to cease operations in the state due to concerns about its ability to detect money laundering and comply with sanctions.
According to CoinGecko data, Bittrex’s trading volume on the previous day was around $17 million, compared to Coinbase Global Inc.’s volume of $1.4 billion. Bill Shihara, a former Amazon security engineering manager, founded Bittrex in 2014 with two other cybersecurity specialists from the online retailer. Lai stated in a tweet on Friday that Bittrex has “never lost funds or been hacked.”
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