Did cryptocurrency exchange giant Bitfinex play a role in last night’s bitcoin sell-off?
As first reported by The Block, the British Virgin Islands-based but Hong Kong-operated exchange has “temporarily paused” EUR, USD, JPY, and GBP wire deposits, although screenshots from customer accounts circulated on social media suggest that the situation should “normalize within a week.”
Bitfinex’s EUR, USD, JPY, GBP wire deposits are temporarily paused.
Things are expected to resume in a week.$BTC #Bitcoin #Bitfinex pic.twitter.com/ZezjJ4jiib— Squeeze (@cryptoSqueeze) October 11, 2018
Reports had emerged last week that Bitfinex, long suspected to be holding funds at the now-faltering Noble Bank in Puerto Rico, had found a permanent banking partner in HSBC.
Per The Block, Bitfinex was actually banking at Bitfinex through a private account via Global Trading Solutions. Consequently, it’s possible that HSBC was not aware that it was holding Bitfinex assets, and — following the significant press coverage — has suspended or closed that account.
The cryptocurrency market has faced a significant sell-off on Thursday, raising questions about whether there is a connection between the decline and concerns over Bitfinex’s oft-opaque operations.
Bitfinex, as CCN reported, published a blog post earlier this week denying allegations that it is insolvent, though many critics remain unconvinced, particularly given the exchange’s close association with the controversial tether (USDT) cryptocurrency.
Developing…Check back for updates
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