Cryptocurrency exchange Bitfinex has confirmed it will block all US customers from November 9 as regulatory uncertainty bites.
In its latest blog post Monday, Bitfinex, which already prohibits US users from becoming verified on its platform, said they should now remove all hosted tokens.
“U.S. customers are already barred from receiving financing from other users on Bitfinex’s peer-to-peer financing platform,” it reiterated.
“This restriction will remain and, in addition, U.S. individual customers will no longer be able to provide financing on Bitfinex effective November 9, 2017.”
Bitfinex’s full exit from the US market has been on the cards for some time as patchwork regulation and difficulty securing “compliant banking solutions” began causing increasing headaches.
Prior to its one-size-fits-all approach, the exchange had barred certain US states as and when necessary to stay within the law, often at short notice.
As part of divesting US holders of its RRT equity tokens formed from a hack in 2016, Bitfinex added they would be able to sell their entire holdings prior to the November 9 deadline, as well as afterwards by “special arrangement.”
Reacting to the news on social media, traders appeared surprised at the scope of Bitfinex’s move while welcoming clarity on an issue that has plagued multiple exchanges serving the country in recent years.