Due to the SEC’s strict enforcement of staking products, Bitstamp, a veteran digital-asset exchange, has decided to stop offering them in the US.
The company’s national CEO, Bobby Zagotta, explained to Bloomberg News that the decision was based on the “current regulatory dynamics” in the US and that it would be effective from Sept. 25.
Only US users have the opportunity to earn rewards on their staked assets until September 25, a report from CoinDesk said. After that date, the tokens will be returned to their accounts without staking.
Bitstamp also stopped supporting seven other cryptocurrencies earlier this month, such as Polygon (MATIC) and Solana (SOL).
Update for our US users 📢
Starting August 29: AXS, CHZ, MANA, MATIC, NEAR, SAND, and SOL trading will be halted after evaluating recent market developments.
Execute any open trades. Holding and withdrawing tokens afterwards will be unaffected.
More info:…
— Bitstamp (@Bitstamp) August 8, 2023
Staking is a process where users earn rewards by locking up tokens to support a blockchain network. However, the SEC considers some of these products as unregistered securities and has taken legal action against them.
For instance, in June, the SEC sued Coinbase Global Inc. for violating its rules by providing staking services. Similarly, Kraken, another competitor, had to pay $30 million to settle SEC charges and discontinued its US staking products.
