sludgefeed.com
Coinbase UK is reportedly ending support for the popular privacy cryptocurrency Zcash (ZEC).
According to recent customer reports, Coinbase has sent out a warning letter to users in the United Kingdom that the exchange will no longer allow the buying and selling of ZEC, starting on August 26. On that date, all remaining ZEC balances will be liquidated into pounds.
While no reason for the sudden policy change was given in the warning letter, many are speculating that the loss of support is due to regulatory pressure from the UK government, as ZEC is designed for transaction anonymity.
In response, the Electric Coin Company, the foundation behind Zcash, followed up with a tweet claiming that Zcash is 100% compatible with UK regulations, in addition to the country’s KYC/AML standards.
Those affected by @coinbase UK issues: this is limited to Coinbase UK only. UK residents can still buy/sell Zcash through @cex_io. No other exchanges in the UK affected. To pre-empt speculation, we confirm that Zcash is 100% compatible with UK regulations & KYC/AML requirements.
— Electric Coin Company (@ElectricCoinCo) August 9, 2019
This news comes amidst growing regulatory uncertainty in the crypto space as Binance prepares to open a dedicated, and limited, US exchange and Poloniex continues to drop support for various altcoins.