Bybit, a cryptocurrency exchange based in Singapore in a recent announcement revealed that it would stop offering its services to the citizens of the United Kingdom.
As the value and demand for crypto are growing untethered, the adoption rate of these digital assets was following suit. This increased adoption of crypto had coerced governments across the globe to keep an eye on the industry and protect their respective citizens from any potential losses considering the volatile nature of the crypto market.
The UK government, particularly the Financial Conduct Authority [FCA] back in October 2020, decided to put a ban on retail crypto derivatives trading. While this was made effective starting from January 2021, products like futures, exchange-traded options, and several others went on to be outlawed.
Steering away from any potential repercussions of continuing in the country, crypto exchange, Bybit revealed that it was bidding adieu to the UK market.
Bybit Gives Its Users Time Until The End Of The Month To Withdraw Funds
In a recent blog post, Bybit urged all its UK users to close all their positions by 31 March 2021. Any further sign-ups using UK mobile numbers as well as IP addresses would reportedly be restrained.
The post read,
“If you are either a U.K. resident or citizen, please close all your positions and withdraw all account balances by 8AM UTC, March 31, 2021. Thereafter, customers located in or are residents of the U.K. will be restricted from accessing or performing any trading activities on Bybit.”
The platform further affirmed that it was doing so to comply with FCA’s crypto derivative ban.
Furthermore, the exchange prompted the aforementioned users to address the situation immediately. The post explained that the exchange would be seeking ways to continue serving its users by urging the regulations to investigate more options. “We hope to be able to earn the privilege to serve you again in the future,” the exchange added.