Bitstamp Caves to SEC Pressure with MATIC, SOL, NEAR, Delistings

• The SEC’s enforcement actions have turned the U.S. market into rugged terrain for crypto firms.
• Bitstamp is the latest crypto firm to buckle under the pressure, delisting several popular altcoins.
• The decision comes despite XRP’s victory in the SEC case against Ripple.

The U.S. has become increasingly challenging to navigate for crypto firms as the SEC asserts its jurisdiction over the nascent market.

With lawsuits against Binance and Coinbase, naming several popular crypto assets as unregistered securities, the regulator has put significant pressure on U.S.-based exchanges to reevaluate their asset listings. 

While large firms, like Coinbase, with resources to fight back and resist the SEC’s pressure, have chosen to do so, others are caving in. Bitstamp is the latest to join this category, following similar decisions from eToro and Robinhood.

Bitstamp To Cease Support for MATIC, SOL, and More

In a blog post on Tuesday, August 8, Bitstamp disclosed that due to the “dynamic regulatory environment” and “recent developments,” it would cease trading support for several crypto assets for U.S. customers from August 29.

Specifically, the exchange will prevent U.S. users from trading Axie Infinity (AXS), Chiliz (CHZ), Decentraland (MANA), Polygon (MATIC), Near Protocol (NEAR), The Sandbox (SAND), and Solana (SOL). The SEC labeled these assets as unregistered securities in enforcement actions against Binance and Coinbase.

Bitstamp has instructed all U.S. users to execute trades involving the listed assets before the deadline, as orders past the deadline would be “permanently disabled.” At the same time, the firm assured users that they could hold the assets mentioned above in their Bitstamp account and withdraw them at any time.

Bitstamp’s decision comes despite a recent ruling in the SEC case against Ripple that declared that XRP was not a security. The verdict boosted investor sentiment around altcoins, as evidenced by the ensuing price rally. However, Bitstamp’s decision suggests that the XRP ruling may not be enough, with the SEC hinting at appealing the ruling.

The prices of the crypto assets earmarked for delisting by Bitstamp did not react to the news.

On the Flipside

Why This Matters

The actions of eToro, Robinhood, and Bitstamp suggest that more crypto exchanges may delist crypto assets labeled as securities by the SEC, particularly among small exchanges that may not have the resources to duke it out with the regulator.

Read this to learn more about how recent SEC enforcement actions affect U.S. exchanges:

SEC v. Binance Puts Screws on U.S. Exchanges to Delist ADA, SOL, MATIC

Learn all you need to know about Circle’s wallet service:

How Circle’s Wallet Service Plans to Bolster Blockchain Adoption