Cryptocurrency exchange Kraken joins Binance with delisting of privacy coin Monero

krakenA major cryptocurrency exchange announced its decision to delist Privacy Coin. Monero XMR/USD For customers in Ireland and Belgium.

what happened: Kraken will suspend all XMR trading and deposits starting May 10th, stated in an official press release. The exchange advised customers to close all margin positions by this date to avoid forced closure.

XMR withdrawals will be stopped on June 10th, after which any remaining XMR balances will be automatically converted to Bitcoin.

Kraken’s decision to delist Monero follows similar moves by other major exchanges. Binance delisted Monero from its main platform in February after flagging several privacy coins for surveillance in January. Binance also delisted its privacy coin in Belgium in September 2023. Another crypto exchange, OKX, followed suit, delisting Monero along with Zcash and Dash in January.

Price action: As of this writing, Monero is down 0.2% in the past 24 hours, bringing the monthly loss to 7.7%.

Also read: Binance has 'gone past' the old ways, says CEO Richard Teng

why is it important: The delisting of privacy coins like Monero is primarily driven by the upcoming European Unon Anti-Money Laundering Regulation (AMLR). The regulations, which are expected to receive final approval this month, will prohibit crypto asset service providers from offering Privacy Coin accounts. This regulation is scheduled to go into effect around the summer of 2027, three years after its promulgation.

The move by Kraken and other exchanges to delist privacy coins is a clear sign of increasing regulatory pressure on cryptocurrencies, especially those that offer high levels of privacy and anonymity.

These developments highlight the challenges privacy coins face in navigating the regulatory environment and the potential impact on their adoption and use.

what's next: The impact of altcoins and Bitcoin as an institutional asset class is a topic expected to be thoroughly explored at Benzinga's upcoming Future of Digital Assets event on November 19th. .

Read next: 'Crypto mom' Hester Peirce: Regulation should take a 'productive path'

This content is created in part using AI tools, and reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.

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