Chinese bitcoin trading platform ViaBTC will become the second exchange after BTCChina to shut down operations amid an ongoing crackdown on cryptocurrency industry.
In an announcement on Firday, Shenzen-based bitcoin and cryptocurrency exchange ViaBTC has confirmed the closure of exchange operations in Mainland China on September 30.
An excerpt from the announcement reads:
On September 4th, China’s central bank together with six other departments released a public statement on regulation policies and warning the risks of ICO projects. As a responsible cryptocurrency exchange platform, ViaBTC (www.viabtc.com) has made a serious decision to carry out the spirits of the policy – we will officially close the website www.viabtc.com for exchange business in Mainland China on September 30th.
As per the arrangements toward shuttering its exchange operations, ViaBTC will halt “registration, asset deposits and all trading pairs” on September 25. Eventually, the website will also be closed on September 30.
ViaBTC’s mining pool and cloud mining services for the public will not be impacted and will continue to operate, the exchange confirmed.
ViaBTC further told users:
Please make sure to withdraw all your assets including CNY and cryptocurrency before September 30th, after which ViaBTC website www.viabtc.com will be officially closed in Mainland China.
As reported by CCN, ViaBTC CEO Haipo Yang first speculated the possibility of a sweeping ban of all exchanges a week ago on Friday, amid rumors that authorities and regulators are extending the ban on all ICOs (initial coin offerings) to cryptocurrency exchanges.
On Tuesday, Yang defiantly stated that ViaBTC wouldn’t shut down and will only stop deposits and trading activities if mandated to do so.
With its announcement, ViaBTC becomes the second major Chinese bitcoin exchange to close operations following Shanghai-based BTCC, the world’s oldest bitcoin exchange, taking the decision to suspend trading by the end of the month.