ShapeShift.io Decides to Pull out of NY Instead of Complying with BitLicense

ShapeShift.io has decided to pull out of New York State instead of complying with BitLicense.

The BitLicense introduced in New York State by the Department of Financial Services has been creating a lot of noise since the first draft was released. Dubbed as a non-Bitcoin friendly regulation, BitLicense regulation requires Bitcoin companies to comply with requirements which are tougher than those applicable for financial institutions. After objections were raised from across the industry, the Superintendent of New York State Department of Financial Services, Benjamin Lawsky released the final updated version of BitLicense earlier this month after incorporating minor changes to the previous draft.

The final draft didn’t address most of the concerns either. Instead of encouraging innovation, BitLicense has created roadblocks to the development of Bitcoin sector under the guise of consumer protection and safety. By creating an unfriendly environment for Bitcoin companies in the state, BitLicense has got the New York based companies exploring other options.

While most of the companies are either complying with the guidelines, applying for the license or registering their protests and concerns against the BitLicense, ShapeShift.io has decided to take a step further and discontinue its services in the New York. According to ShapeShift.io, the company is forced to pull out of New York as they choose not to comply with the terms of BitLicense due to their ethical and moral stand towards customer privacy.

ShapeShift.io is one of popular cryptocurrency exchanges which enables users to exchange bitcoin and altcoins without having to create an account. The platform is known for its easy to use interface and privacy policy.

According to the CEO of ShapeShift.io, Erik Voorhees — The company has two options to choose from, either to comply and operate in New York or leave New York and they choose the latter as they are not comfortable spying on thousands of their customers so that they can make the government’s job easier. However, the company is comfortable disclosing customer’s IP and wallet address, if required by the law, but disclosing their names and home address is a completely different matter.

By announcing its intentions to pull out of New York, ShapeShift.io has become the first company to withdraw its operation in the state because of BitLicense and it may not be the last one to do so. We can expect other companies to follow suit in the near future.