Kraken to halt XRP trading for U.S. users starting Jan. 29

Exchanges • January 15, 2021, 6:00PM EST

Kraken is moving to halt XRP trading for U.S. users in light of the Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) lawsuit against Ripple.

U.S. based Kraken users will be unable to trade XRP from Jan. 29 at 5 p.m. PT, according to a statement published Friday by the exchange.

Those with spot positions on margin must satisfy any outstanding margin obligations by the close of Jan. 28 or face liquidation. They'll still be able to deposit, hold and withdraw XRP. The decision only affects U.S. customers — XRP markets will remain available to those outside the U.S.

"We are monitoring the situation regarding the SEC's filing and will adapt according to any new developments," the exchange said.

The SEC brought its case against Ripple in December, alleging that the firm's sales of XRP qualified as an unregistered securities offering. Since the regulator filed the suit, a number of crypto venues have suspended XRP trading, including OKCoin, Coinbase, Bittrex, Genesis, Binance.US and eToro.

About Author

Aislinn Keely is a reporter on The Block's policy team holding down the legal beat. She covers court decisions, bankruptcies, regulatory actions and other key moments in the legal sphere, putting them in context for the wider crypto industry. Before The Block, she lent her voice to the NPR affiliate WFUV and helmed Fordham University's student newspaper. Send tips or thoughts on all things policy and legal to akeely@theblock.co or follow her on Twitter for updates @AislinnKeely.