Bitfront to Close Down as Crypto Economy Sinks

Bitfront has announced that it is shutting down business due to the current financial crisis in the industry. The US-based crypto exchange that enjoys support from Japanese social media app Line is the latest digital market to experience the “financial contagion unleashed by the spectacular collapse of another crypto exchange, FTX.”

The cryptocurrency industry is in a serious financial crisis with the world’s largest digital currency, Bitcoin, dropping about 65 per cent, according to CoinDesk.

A statement published on the platform’s website this week says: “trading on Bitfront will be suspended by the end of the year and withdrawals on March 31, 2023.”

According to the statement, the company has been unable “to overcome the challenges in this rapidly-evolving industry.” It however did not ascribe its decision to shut down to the dramatic implosion of FTX.

Also Read: BlockFi Files for Bankruptcy Protection following FTX Collapse

The statement says: “Please note that this decision… is unrelated to recent issues related to certain exchanges that have been accused of misconduct.”

Line, which opened Bitfront in 2020, will now focus on its native blockchain ecosystem and token. Its decision to shut down the exchange came on the same day crypto lender BlockFi filed for bankruptcy, according to Diksha Madhok.

Last week, another digital market BlockFi filed a lawsuit against FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried’s Emergent Fidelity Technologies, “demanding he turn over collateral that BlockFi claims it is owed.”  

“Unlike Bitfront, BlockFi’s problems were directly linked to FTX. The lender had announced earlier this month that it had halted withdrawals, citing “significant exposure” to FTX, as well as its sister hedge fund Alameda,” Madhok writes.