Peer-to-Peer Bitcoin Exchange ‘Paxful’Announces Shut Down

• Youssef has purportedly suggested that Paxful customers switch to a different service.
• Schaback was taken aback by Paxful’s sudden decision to halt business.

Paxful, a peer-to-peer Bitcoin exchange, stated yesterday that it has temporarily ceased operations due to ongoing tensions between co-founders Ray Youssef and Artur Schaback. Although Schaback is working to get back up and running, Youssef has purportedly suggested that Paxful customers switch to a different service.

With the departure of key staff and persistent regulatory headwinds in the U.S., Paxful CEO Youssef issued a statement on the company’s website on Tuesday urging Paxful’s customers to remove funds from the platform and seek other alternatives. He expressed doubt about Paxful’s continued existence, writing that the company’s future was uncertain.

Youssef later claimed in a Twitter Post that the company was in jeopardy because of a lawsuit filed against Paxful and himself by Schaback.

May Spell End of the Venture

Schaback was taken aback by Paxful’s sudden decision to halt business. He has stated his intention to reopen the marketplace, despite the fact that he acknowledges the platform’s suspension of operations may spell the end of the venture.

Youssef has rejected claims made by Schaback that the statement made by Paxful yesterday was part of an “orchestrated” attempt to shift the company’s activities outside of U.S. jurisdiction. Schaback claims he and Youssef were close to making a deal in 2021, and the failure of that negotiation is at the heart of their current quarrel. That might have included purchasing Schaback’s share of Paxful.

Youssef recently encouraged Paxful customers to check out other trading platforms, recommending that they sign up with a company named Noones, a “super app” with identical capabilities and dubbed “Ray’s Recommendation.”