Wasabi Bitcoin wallet winds down its business from the US 

zkSNACKs decided to exit the US crypto market amid the self-custody Crypto wallet crackdown in the country.

Self-custody crypto wallets are mainly known for their decentralisation and such wallets allow people to transfer their crypto funds anywhere anytime. However, these wallets can be misused by bad actors but overall such wallets remain the best decentralised financial tool to survive against the unfair financial sanctions.

On 27 April 2024, zkSNACKs, the company behind the privacy-boosting Bitcoin wallet Wasabi, terminated its services for US-based users. 

Through a dedicated announcement, the company stated that people from the U.S. and related areas can’t access its website or  Wasabi Wallet and its services because of an IP address firewall.

So now we can say that Americans don’t have any option to achieve privacy for their Bitcoin transactions. 

The company behind this wallet failed to mention that the decision was part of a regulatory crackdown but the majority of the reports dragged fingers toward the latest case of Samourai Wallet. 

Just a few days ago, two executives from Samourai’s Bitcoin wallet were arrested and extradited to the US jurisdiction. Also, the Samurai’s website has been seized by the authorities. 

Just a day ago, Phoenix Bitcoin wallet also announced service termination for US-based users. This Bitcoin wallet firm also failed to mention the reason behind this decision but media reports confirmed that it was a response to ongoing crackdowns on the privacy-focused crypto wallets in the US jurisdiction. 

A crypto enthusiast noted that the US authorities are taking action against Bitcoin in different ways. They call Bitcoin money when they want to take any legal action but they will label it a speculative asset when they need to describe it as garbage.

Such types of actions against Bitcoin & crypto-related services in the US jurisdiction are going to play a vital role in the upcoming US presidential election.

Read also: DTCC will not provide loans to investment vehicles with exposure to cryptocurrency