PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) says it will be halting UK-based crypto sales until next year.
Payments firm PayPal recently revealed that it will not be allowing UK clients to purchase cryptocurrencies via its platform from October 2023, as the company works on adhering to new regulatory guidelines for crypto-related promotions.
The UK’s financial regulator is expected to introduce stricter rules in order to limit how crypto-related products are advertised to the nation’s consumers, including requiring cryptocurrency-focused businesses to provide warnings regarding the risk and doing away with those “refer a friend” bonuses.
PayPal will reportedly “temporarily” suspend the ability for clients to purchase crypto via its platform from October 1, 2023, as the firm focuses on complying with the latest regulatory guidelines, which should come into effect on October 8, 2023. This, according to an email to clients sent out this past Tuesday.
The firm noted that it is planning to re-start in “early 2024”.
As first reported by Reuters, PayPal says that it “consistently works closely with regulators around the world to adhere to applicable rules and regulations in the markets in which we operate.” This message was reportedly sent to the firm’s customers via an email, a copy of which was reviewed by Reuters.
The firm also mentioned that clients may hold and sell their crypto “at any time” from now onwards. The update had been earlier reported by various crypto media as well.
PayPal had initially introduced cryptocurrency buying and selling in the UK back in 2021.
Regulatory authorities across the globe are increasingly focused on regulating transactions involving crypto-assets, especially after the spectacular collapse of a number of digital currency firms such as FTX this past year (which left inexperienced investors with huge losses).
After digital token prices declined sharply this past year, the price of major cryptos like Bitcoin (BTC) gradually started to make a modest recovery, up about 75% so far in 2023.
Despite this, the BTC price is at less than half of the all-time high, which was set back in November 2021.
Recently, PayPal’s shares surged considerably when it revealed that it has introduced a US dollar stablecoin – which is a type of virtual currency that’s meant to keep a constant price by being pegged to a stable fiat currency such as the USD.