Bakkt delists major altcoins, following Robinhood and eToro.
The New York-based derivatives exchange Bakkt has decided to stop trading three popular altcoins due to recent regulatory developments in the United States. Solana (SOL), Polygon (MATIC), and Cardano (ADA) have been suspended, according to a Fortune report. The decision was made following the lawsuits that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) brought against crypto exchanges Binance and Coinbase last week. In the complaints, the regulator labeled over 20 digital assets including SOL, MATIC, and ADA as securities. The total number of cryptocurrencies that the SEC sees as a “security” has now reached an estimated 68.
The delisting of these altcoins has been caused by regulatory uncertainty, which has also led other trading platforms to delist token pairs in the past few days. Bakkt’s general counsel and secretary, Marc D’Annunzio, told Fortune that the company was implementing changes “until there is further clarity on how to compliantly offer a more extensive list of coins.” The delisting of altcoins tightens liquidity for tokens already suffering from the market downturn. Together, MATIC, ADA, and SOL lost nearly $10 billion in market capitalization, according to data from CoinMarketCap.
Bakkt’s delisting follows its acquisition of blockchain technology platform Apex Crypto in April for $55 million in cash and stock. After the acquisition, Bakkt also promoted an overhaul of token pairs trading on the platform, dropping 25 of the 36 listed crypto tokens.
