The US-based digital currency platform Bittrex has released the statement regarding the accounts related to North Korean residents. The exchange has said on Monday 22nd April that it is still working on to exclude those accounts forbidden by the US government from using its services. The statement surfaced just after the NYDFS claimed that the exchange has allowed two North Korean residents to open an account in the platform.
Thursday NYDFS indicated out that the exchange has a small number of users from North Korea. On this ground, NYDFS has also denied Bitlicense to Bittrex at the beginning of this month, which means the exchange will not operate in New York state dominion. The exchange has investigated into the matter as a part of its due diligence and compliance with KYC.
The exchange has said that the alleged accounts are of the same two users that were previously verified in 2017. The exchange has further noted that South Korean inhabitants have wrongly designated North Korea from the country drop-down menu. They have authenticated the user from their IP address and country identification and have found all are from South Korea.
The exchange has also said they are ready to answer all the questions of the authorities if they have any.
Presently the US government forbids any financial institution including crypto exchanges to provide any business to the residents of North Korea, Syria, Iran, Cuba and also to any person having economic authorization imposed against them by the Federal Government.
The exchange has specified the new rule for the trades in 2018 which says it does not offer services to the citizens that the United States embargoes. The new law faced reactions in those countries as the financial restrictions cut them off from the transnational economic system. But the decentralized behaviour of the cryptocurrencies offers them a great method to transfer money without any hindrance. The nations facing US sanction like Iran, Russia, and Venezuela have decided to launch their cryptocurrencies.
Although NYDFS has decided to restrict the license of Bittrex sighting the deficiency in their AML policies, the regulatory authorities have said that the exchange has failed to prove its honesty in business and has failed to conduct it fairly, carefully and efficiently. Among them, all sanction compliance is the main reason cited by NYDFS for rejecting the license.
Presently Bittrex is ranked 58th for trading cryptocurrencies according to the market cap. The daily trading volume of the exchange is $47.8 million.
