Wirex to exclude embattled XRP from US launch as fellow UK crypto firms plan their responses
Quick Take
- Wirex will not include XRP in a US version of the app when it launches in January.
- Ziglu has decided to suspend XRP trading as of January 12
A handful of crypto wallet operators in the United Kingdom are reviewing whether to prevent millions of customers from buying XRP through their apps.
Wirex, a London-headquartered company with 3.3 million registered users, has moved to strike XRP from a soon-to-launch operation in the United States. Ziglu, a newer wallet firm with some 20,000 users, will suspend XRP trading starting January 12.
“XRP is still available for Wirex customers in Europe and Asia. Having said that, for our upcoming US launch (January 2021) XRP won’t be available, so our US customers won’t be able to send, receive or trade XRP via Wirex app,” said Pavel Matveev, chief executive of Wirex.
Matveev said that the SEC allegations, as well “other companies’ example” — he specifically cited Coinbase’s recent announcement that it will suspend XRP trading next month — had driven the decision to cut the token out of its US offering.
On December 22, the US Securities and Exchange Commission announced that it would sue Ripple, the company which created XRP, and alleged that the company and two of its executives have engaged in an ongoing unregistered securities sale.
The news triggered a sharp decline in the price of the digital asset, from roughly 60 cents to below 20 cents today. It has also caused a ripple effect among crypto businesses globally, with various exchange operators, market makers and specialist asset managers all pausing activities connected with the token.
The situation is also being closely monitored by UK crypto firms, many of which rely on exchanges such as Coinbase to provide their execution services.
Ziglu apparently decided that allowing customers to continue to trade XRP would be too risky. The firm plans to notify customers of the suspension Wednesday morning UK time.
"The SEC filing against Ripple and the suspension of trading by a number of exchanges has significantly impacted both the price and the liquidity of XRP which has increased the risk in trading XRP," Ziglu said in a statement shared with The Block.
The Block has also learned that Revolut, the neo-bank with more than 10 million customers, is among those keeping close tabs on the situation, although it is yet to take action.
Ripple did not respond by press time to a request for comment.
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