Revolut to stop US crypto services amid SEC clampdown
Revolut will stop offering crypto services to its US customers as regulators in the country begin to clamp down on the sector.
The digital lender said it was withdrawing services because of “the evolving regulatory environment and the uncertainties around the crypto market in the US”, a spokesperson for the company said in a statement.
The spokesperson said that from Sept. 2 US customers will not be able to place buy orders for cryptocurrencies on Revolut, and from Oct. 3, customers will no longer be able to buy, sell or hold any cryptocurrencies.
“This decision has not been taken lightly,” the spokesperson said, but said that it will only impact “less than 1 per cent of Revolut’s crypto customers globally”.
It comes as US regulators, such as the Securities and Exchange Commission, ramp up their scrutiny of digital assets following a number of high-profile collapses last year, including crypto exchange FTX.
The SEC is currently suing both Binance and Coinbase – the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchanges – for, among other allegations, operating as unlicensed securities exchanges. Both firms have denied the allegations.
Meanwhile, Revolut is still waiting for its UK banking licence after saying that one was “imminent” back in March.