Bittrex to Stop Services in Belarus and Ukraine

Friday, 11/09/2020 | 11:31 GMT by Arnab Shome
  • The users in the listed countries have 2 weeks to withdraw their funds from the exchange.
Bittrex to Stop Services in Belarus and Ukraine
Finance Magnates

Popular crypto exchange Bittrex is terminating its services for the users based in seven countries, the most notable ones being Belarus and Ukraine. The other five countries are Burundi, Mali, Myanmar, Nicaragua, and Panama.

“For regulatory reasons, we, unfortunately, have to inform you that we are no longer able to provide services to customers who are residents of certain jurisdictions,” the exchange stated in a notification sent to its customers.

Though Bittrex highlighted that its services will be halted for the mentioned countries within the next fourteen days, for some customers it took an immediate effect. Additionally, it detailed that all fiat deposits have been terminated and asked clients to withdraw funds within the next fourteen days.

“After that time, we will need to disable any remaining accounts,” the exchange added, so it is not clear if the customers will be allowed to withdraw their holdings after the deadline.

A Well-Thought Out Decision?

This is not the first such restrictions imposed by the exchange as last year it exited from 31 countries across the globe.

However, the inclusion of the two eastern European countries to this list is odd, given the increased adoption of digital currencies in both markets. Chainalysis, in a recent report, named Ukraine, Russia, and Venezuela as the top countries to adopt Cryptocurrencies .

The Blockchain analytics firm pointed out that though the US and China still lead in the volumes of cryptocurrency transactions, those numbers are mostly pumped by 'whales'. On the contrary, these three countries saw a rise in the retail usage of crypto.

And given the ongoing political unrest in Belarus, the country also might see a spike in digital currency adoption. Furthermore, the recent heavy censorship on the country’s internet access resulted in a rise in the usage of virtual private networks (VPSs).

Popular crypto exchange Bittrex is terminating its services for the users based in seven countries, the most notable ones being Belarus and Ukraine. The other five countries are Burundi, Mali, Myanmar, Nicaragua, and Panama.

“For regulatory reasons, we, unfortunately, have to inform you that we are no longer able to provide services to customers who are residents of certain jurisdictions,” the exchange stated in a notification sent to its customers.

Though Bittrex highlighted that its services will be halted for the mentioned countries within the next fourteen days, for some customers it took an immediate effect. Additionally, it detailed that all fiat deposits have been terminated and asked clients to withdraw funds within the next fourteen days.

“After that time, we will need to disable any remaining accounts,” the exchange added, so it is not clear if the customers will be allowed to withdraw their holdings after the deadline.

A Well-Thought Out Decision?

This is not the first such restrictions imposed by the exchange as last year it exited from 31 countries across the globe.

However, the inclusion of the two eastern European countries to this list is odd, given the increased adoption of digital currencies in both markets. Chainalysis, in a recent report, named Ukraine, Russia, and Venezuela as the top countries to adopt Cryptocurrencies .

The Blockchain analytics firm pointed out that though the US and China still lead in the volumes of cryptocurrency transactions, those numbers are mostly pumped by 'whales'. On the contrary, these three countries saw a rise in the retail usage of crypto.

And given the ongoing political unrest in Belarus, the country also might see a spike in digital currency adoption. Furthermore, the recent heavy censorship on the country’s internet access resulted in a rise in the usage of virtual private networks (VPSs).

About the Author: Arnab Shome
Arnab Shome
  • 6639 Articles
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About the Author: Arnab Shome
Arnab is an electronics engineer-turned-financial editor. He entered the industry covering the cryptocurrency market for Finance Magnates and later expanded his reach to forex as well. He is passionate about the changing regulatory landscape on financial markets and keenly follows the disruptions in the industry with new-age technologies.
  • 6639 Articles
  • 100 Followers

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