Crypto.com, a cryptocurrency asset exchange and wallet provider, has announced that it will delist Tether, the world’s leading stablecoin, for Canadians.
Crypto.com recently notified its Canadian customers that Tether would no longer be supported as of January 31.
On that date, the firm stated that it will delist USDT and suspend all USDT transactions.
“Please review your USDT balance and take any necessary action (e.g. withdrawal or conversion) before the effective date,” it said.
Crypto.com also stated that as of that date, the exchange will no longer support Tether trading, deposits, and withdrawals, and will not credit any USDT deposits made after January.
All remaining USDT balances will be converted to USDC automatically, it added. The move is being made to comply with local regulations, according to a spokesperson.
“Crypto.com has delisted USDT for users in Canada in accordance with instructions from the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) as part of our pre-registration undertaking for a restricted dealer license,”
The Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) strengthened its regulatory oversight of crypto and stablecoins in December. The CSA stated that it will continue to monitor and assess the presence and role of stablecoins in Canadian capital markets.
“As a result of this ongoing work, the CSA believes that stablecoins or stablecoin arrangements may qualify as securities and/or derivatives.”
It will be interesting to see if any other major Canadian exchanges follow suit.
Furthermore, Crypto.com was in the news late last year due to concerns that its reserves were heavily backed by illiquid tokens.
With a circulating supply of 66.3 billion USDT, Tether remains the world’s largest stablecoin. As a result, according to CoinGecko, it has a 48% market share.
Tether’s supply has begun to rise slightly after a 21.6% decrease from May to November 2022.
Circle is in second place with a 32% market share and 43.7 billion USDC in circulation. Its supply was also reduced by 22% in 2022.
Binance USD is the third most popular stablecoin, with 16.4 billion BUSD in circulation and a 12% market share.
Furthermore, the total market capitalization of all stablecoins is $137 billion, accounting for 15.4% of the total crypto market capitalization.
