Crypto exchange Bitfinex on Friday announced changes to its services for Ontario, Canada customers.
The exchange noted that it will be closing the accounts of users who no longer have funds on the platform.
Furthermore, customers who do not have open positions, open margin positions, or “borrowing” in its peer-to-peer financing market will no longer be able to access the market or participate in borrowing.
“Starting on March 1, 2022, Ontario customers will no longer have access to any Services. Any Ontario customers who have open positions in our peer-to-peer financing markets are advised to immediately start exiting those positions in preparation for March 1, 2022,” the exchange warned.
Although Bitfinex did not give reasons for its decision to stop offering crypto services in the province. However, according to a similar event, it could be as a result of regulatory concerns.
For instance, back in June, the leading crypto exchange, Binance took a similar approach by instructing its Ontario customers to close their accounts by 31st of December, 2021.
Binance noted that the decision was made due to the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) move against other crypto exchanges saying that they did not comply with its regulatory framework.
However, Binance announced 6 months later that after regulatory compliance and being granted registration as a Money Services Business by the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC), it will resume operations in the country while still working on full registration.
Canada’s Regulators Crypto Stance
With Canada’s regulatory approach towards crypto so far, it has not disapproved of it but rather is working to set up regulatory guidelines that will accommodate the emerging asset class.
Regulatory bodies in the North American nation have not wasted much time regulating the crypto industry.
Just late last year, OSC approved crypto trading platform Bitbuy as a marketplace and investment dealer for crypto assets.
Source: https://coinfomania.com/bitfinex-to-shut-down-operation-for-ontario-users/#utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=bitfinex-to-shut-down-operation-for-ontario-users