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Localbitcoins Adds Bitcoin Cash and Other Cryptocurrencies as Payment Methods

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Localbitcoins, one of the biggest P2P exchanges in the world, has added Bitcoin Cash and other cryptocurrencies as payment methods to acquire Bitcoin on its platform. This marks a clear departure from the earlier position of the company, which hadn’t added new payment methods and had remained Bitcoin-only for some time.

Localbitcoins Adds Bitcoin Cash and Other Cryptos

Localbitcoins, one of the biggest P2P cryptocurrency exchanges in the world, is now allowing its users to purchase Bitcoin with other cryptos, in a departure from its earlier Bitcoin-only approach. The company announced in a blog post last week they will now allow listings leveraging Tether (USDT), Polkadot (DOT), Cardano (ADA), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), USD Coin (USDC), Chainlink (LINK), and Dogecoin (DOGE) as payment methods.

The exchange also added several new fiat-based payment methods that can be used internationally, and others that can only be used in specific countries. The decision marks a clear departure from the traditional Bitcoin-only stance the company has had since its creation, and effectively creates the possibility for arbitrage with altcoin prices on the platform, albeit not as directly as in a traditional exchange.

Localbitcoins is one of the first P2P exchanges and, apart from the strengthening of the KYC measures associated with the use of the platform, it has not changed much. Even the user experience and webpage have remained much the same since it began operation in 2012, and the platform still lacks a mobile app.

Slow Innovation

One of the reasons for this sudden change of heart could be the loss of relevance the exchange is facing in emerging markets like Venezuela, where the exchange has been moved from being the preferred way of buying bitcoin to just another good option in the market.

Evidence of this is dwindling volumes of sales, which can be seen in Coin Dance statistics. This was also exacerbated by the arrival of a new P2P alternative market: Binance P2P, which is backed by the exchange, and has attracted many of Localbitcoins’ merchants and customers in the last two years. Further, other less privacy-invasive options have emerged, such as Bitcoin.com Local, where no KYC is required for direct P2P trade.

Localbitcoins’ waning popularity might be just a sign of the times, as now there are tons of other ways to purchase bitcoin aside from direct, P2P exchange. However, P2P still has some key traits that make it the to-go method of acquiring cryptocurrencies for many, and Localbitcoins might be expanding its offer and payment methods to keep up with the requirements of its users.

What do you think of Localbitcoins adopting new cryptocurrencies as payment methods? Tell us in the comments section below.

Binance Extends Blockade of Zimbabwean Crypto Users to Include Non-Resident Traders

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Malta-based cryptocurrency exchange, Binance, has reportedly extended its blockade of Zimbabwean users to include non-resident citizens. As a result of the new measures, all Zimbabwean nationals are now precluded from using the Binance trading platform.

Zimbabwean Nationals Blocked

Prior to the introduction of this new measure, Binance apparently allowed Zimbabwean nationals with non-Zimbabwean residential addresses to access its trading platform, while those residing in-country were blocked. Still, some Zimbabwe-based crypto users were able to circumvent this blockade by installing virtual private network (VPN) apps on their devices. The new measures appear to have plugged these loopholes.

In a letter addressed to one user, Binance, which recently installed former U.S. banks regulator Brian Brooks as CEO of its U.S division, refuses to divulge the reasons why it is now rigorously enforcing the U.S. Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC) measures against Zimbabwe. Instead, the crypto exchange is warning of consequences that Zimbabwean users face if they fail to withdraw their digital assets in time. The letter explained:

You have identified yourself as a Zimbabwean national in your submitted document and as a result, we are unable to serve you further in accordance with our terms of use. Kindly note that the trading function is not available for this account. As such, we recommend that you withdraw your assets in their original form.

In addition, the undated letter warns the affected users to “withdraw all funds as soon as possible within the three days.” Afterwards, the trading account will be permanently deactivated.

Decision Slammed

In the meantime, one affected user has slammed the new Binance policy of targeting users “based on their nationality rather than their location.” Although Binance has so far refused to furnish users with the reasons for its actions, the new measures suggest the exchange may be attempting to shake off a perception that it enables money launderers and tax evaders.

As previously reported by Bitcoin.com News, Binance is already under a U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) investigation. Therefore, by excluding all Zimbabwean users from its trading platform, Binance may be signaling its newfound interest in adhering to the U.S. government’s sanctions policies.

What are your thoughts on Binance’s new terms of use? Tell us what you think in the comments section below.

Binance Faces DOJ Probe as Investigators Target Crypto Money Laundering and Tax Evasion

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Binance Faces DOJ Probe as Investigators Target Crypto Money Laundering and Tax Evasion

Binance, one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges in the world, is now being probed by the Department of Justice (DOJ) under the assumption that it could be immersed in money laundering transactions. The investigation will also include inquiries from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), which has been recently investigating a number of crypto trading platforms.

Binance Probed by US Department of Justice

Today, it was revealed that Binance, one of the most popular cryptocurrency exchanges in the world, is being the subject of an investigation related to transactions involving alleged money laundering, according to an article from Bloomberg. The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) will be making inquiries to people with knowledge on the inner workings of the company stealthily, due to the confidentiality of the probe. The inquiry will be bolstered by an investigation by Chainalysis, which states that more than $700 million of illicit funds have gone through the exchange.

The IRS is also involved in the probe and will be investigating possible tax offenses involving the exchange and its customers. Binance is a global company that restricts access to U.S. citizens, allowing Americans to trade using its alternate platform Binance U.S. only. However, Changpeng Zhao, CEO of the exchange, has repeatedly stated his company doesn’t have headquarters because Bitcoin doesn’t have a headquarters.

The market reacted very poorly to this news, with most of the top cryptocurrencies dumping prices down double digits. Bitcoin fell 10% after the news, continuing the negative run it experienced after Tesla announced it would stop accepting bitcoin (BTC) as payment for its vehicles due to environmental considerations.

The Exchange Answers

Binance reacted fast to this news and Jessica Jung, the firm’s spokeswoman responded. She stated:

We take our legal obligations very seriously and engage with regulators and law enforcement in a collaborative fashion. We have worked hard to build a robust compliance program that incorporates anti-money laundering principles and tools used by financial institutions to detect and address suspicious activity.

But this is not the first encounter that Binance has had with the U.S. justice system. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) is also probing the exchange to find out if it allowed U.S. citizens to trade unregistered derivatives that are under the jurisdiction of the institution. The CFTC investigation is also ongoing at the time of writing.

Exchanges seem to be the next target of regulatory agencies. Executives at Bitmex, another important crypto derivatives exchange, were indicted with money laundering charges last year.

What do you think about finance being probed by the DOJ? Tell us in the comments section down below.

Report: Major Bitcoin Exchange Binance Investigated By U.S. Authorities

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The world’s largest bitcoin exchange, Binance, is reportedly being investigated by U.S. authorities.

The world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, Binance, is under investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice and Internal Revenue Service (IRS), according to a report from Bloomberg.

“As part of the inquiry, officials who probe money laundering and tax offenses have sought information from individuals with insight into Binance’s business,” per the report. “Chainalysis Inc., a blockchain forensics firm whose clients include U.S. federal agencies, concluded last year that among transactions that it examined, more funds tied to criminal activity flowed through Binance than any other crypto exchange.”

Binance is based in the Cayman Islands, with an office in Singapore, but no single headquarters. CEO Changpeng Zhao has said that Binance follows U.S. regulations and blocks American citizens from accessing its website, though it launched Binance.US in September 2019 to serve American clients with bitcoin trading in a compliant way. This American division hired former U.S. Treasury official Brian Brooks as its chief executive last month.

“While the Justice Department and IRS probe potential criminal violations, the specifics of what the agencies are examining couldn’t be determined, and not all inquiries lead to allegations of wrongdoing,” per Bloomberg.

Earlier this week, Binance temporarily suspended withdrawals from its platform, according to TheStreet.

The inquiry on the part of the IRS comes as the agency appears to be ramping up its efforts to compel bitcoin investors to pay applicable taxes.

Shiba Inu Gets Listed on Binance and FTX After Price Skyrockets

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Shiba Inu, an Ethereum based Dogecoin ripoff, has been listed on two important cryptocurrency exchanges today, Binance and FTX, after the price skyrocketed more than 1500% last week. Binance has faced stiff criticism for listing Shiba Inu due to its origin, but their systems are now overwhelmed with associated inflows.

Shiba Inu Gets FTX and Binance Listing

Shiba Inu, an ethereum based meme coin looking to be the next Dogecoin, has been listed on two important exchanges in the cryptocurrency sphere: FTX and Binance. Binance included the currency in its innovation zone, which presents some limitation for its trading. FTX included it as a full-fledged cryptocurrency, including spot markets and perpetual futures to trade with it.

The cryptocurrency has experienced a hike in prices during the last week, skyrocketing by almost 1500%. However, this metric is dwarfed by how much it has grown in the last month, rising by 40,000%. However, even after the astounding price action movement, it is still considered interesting by new investors. They see it as a way of riding the bull market after having missed the Dogecoin pump.

Shiba Inu, which was launched in August 2020, and boasts a market cap of 1,000,000,000,000,000, played a very interesting move to gain notoriety and validity in the memecoin market: It gave 50% of its issued tokens to Vitalik Buterin, one of the founders of Ethereum, who now has control of more than $8 billion dollars of the currency, making him richer in Shiba Inu than in Ethereum.

Exchanges Face Stiff Criticism

However, after listing Shiba Inu in Binance, its CEO Changpeng Zhao faced stiff criticism from people that believe this currency is just a Dogecoin ripoff for allowing this to happen. Zhao answered quickly to these critics, declaring via Twitter that Binance was just answering to the rising demand of users asking for it to be available for trading. Zhao stated:

We follow users. There is a large number of users demanding it, to the point where we ran out of ETH deposit addresses due to SHIB today. Never happened before for any other ERC20 coin.

Zhao also argued that the work of exchanges is merely to provide a “neutral” place for users to do their trading business. He asked users to do their own research about new tokens, and advised them not to buy coins they did not understand. However, this behavior is not new: Binance also faced backslash after listing the currency “Sushi” last year, which, according to some, skipped due diligence procedure.

What do you think about Binance and FTX listing Shiba Inu? Tell us in the comments section below.