The cryptocurrency business, CoinPayments, ascribed its untimely end to AML laws and market developments. As a result, it instructed users to withdraw their crypto in five days.
CoinPayments Advises US Users to Withdraw Assets Before its Shutdown
The closure of CoinPayments.net, a global payment gateway that accepts more than 120 different kinds of cryptocurrency currencies, was announced by email to consumers last week. According to the business, users are advised to transfer their virtual assets to an external wallet by July 19th at the latest.
Many people were worried, and others wondered whether this was a crypto grab or an exit scam due to the covert manner in which the closure information was sent to consumers through email and the short warning period provided for the withdrawal of their digital assets.
An exit scam is when a legal or criminal firm pretends to have lost access to finances or items due to hacking, government seizure, new rules, or other obstacles. They convince customers they can't reimburse them or provide paid services, then steal the money or items.
In the past, BleepingComputer has covered escape scams carried out by dark web marketplace Empire, crypto platform ARBIX, and the creators of the unexpected Jokeroo malware.
Contrarily, CoinPayments has encouraged clients to withdraw their funds and given them at least some early warning, making it seem improbable that this is an exit scam.
The cryptocurrency operation has attributed the unexpected termination of its commercial activities throughout the United States to current Anti-Money Laundering (AML) rules and market shifts.
Additionally, the platform does not only exclude the United States. Instead, the United States has joined the business's current list of around 34 countries, which includes those that are OFAC-sanctioned and with which CoinPayments and its parent company UAB Star Ventures do not deal.
Bitcoin Mining Firms Shuts Down in Texas Due to Heatwave
In preparation for a heatwave in Central Texas, large-scale Bitcoin mining firms reportedly shut down their equipment. As demand for air conditioning increases along with the temperature, such occurrences often increase the cost of energy and may significantly strain the state's power supply.
According to Lee Bratcher, president of the Texas Blockchain Association, "almost 1,000 megawatts worth of Bitcoin mining load" has been shut down in response to requests for grid energy conservation from the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT).
ERCOT asked Texans and big energy consumers to reduce their power consumption on Monday from 19:00 until 01:00 UTC. It predicted that the overall electricity demand would exceed 79,000 megawatts, breaking the previous record of 78,206 megawatts that was established last Friday. In Austin, the temperature had risen to 107 degrees Fahrenheit as of the time of writing.
Following China's 2021 crypto mining ban, the US became the leading mining center. Texas' cheap energy prices and crypto-friendly regulations are attracting massive mining businesses. Argo Blockchain intends to invest $2 billion in a Texan mining plant.
