A news that could create a global sensation has hit the cryptocurrency world like a bomb. The US-based crypto exchange Kraken is actively investigating several issues, including the removal of Tether’s USDT support within the European Union (EU) borders. This process is occurring during the preparation period for the implementation of MiCA, which will start in the EU in July. According to a report by Bloomberg, the upcoming EU regulations are expected to affect USDT, the world’s most traded cryptocurrency.
Will Kraken Delist Tether?
The European Banking Authority (EBA) has finalized MiCA, which will impose restrictions on the sale of stablecoins to EU investors. Investors are known to use stablecoins like USDT to move their cryptocurrencies between exchanges or to stay away from token price movements. Kraken’s global regulatory strategy head Marcus Hughes said:
We are definitely planning for all possibilities, including situations where listing certain tokens like USDT is not possible. This is an actively reviewed topic, and we may make definitive decisions as the situation becomes clearer. Tether, the issuer of USDT, acknowledged Kraken’s statements, indicating that the firm expects exchanges to “maintain USDT as an on-ramp solution while rightly focusing on EUR liquidity for European customers.”
On the other hand, Tether’s CEO Paolo Ardoino had previously expressed concerns about the necessity of MiCA. It is also known that Tether has no regulation plans under the new rules in the medium term.
Kraken’s potential delisting of USDT on its European platform follows a similar move by another major crypto exchange, OKX, which earlier this year eliminated the ability for EU users to use USDT to buy or sell other cryptocurrencies. Hughes also claimed:
This is an evolving picture. We are clear that it will not be possible to offer the type and number of stablecoins currently available in Europe moving forward. At some point in the future, there will be a disruption where this will no longer be possible.
How Much is Bitcoin Worth?
While dark clouds hover over USDT, all eyes were on Bitcoin‘s price. As of the time of writing, Bitcoin is trading at $66,750 after a 2.19% increase.
Bitcoin’s market cap has also surpassed $1.3 trillion. BTC’s 24-hour trading volume, however, has fallen to $28 billion after a 13% decrease. This situation could be interpreted as a renewed decline in investor interest.
It is known that even BTC, which is at the top of the market, has not surpassed Tether in terms of trading volume. It remains to be seen whether BTC can dethrone Tether in Europe following the upcoming developments.
