PayPal, a big player in the fintech industry, has announced the suspension of cryptocurrency sales in the United Kingdom until 2024, a move considered as a  significant move reflecting the changing regulatory landscape around cryptocurrencies. The reason for this latest decision by the company is in connection with the growing scrutiny and calls for stricter regulation of the cryptocurrency market as worries about fraud and illicit use continue to spread.

An official statement by PayPal published on the This Is Money platform says that PayPal’s move to stop facilitating cryptocurrency transactions in the United Kingdom is a significant response to the rising call for tighter regulation of the cryptocurrency industry.

A reporter with This Is Money,  Daniel Fessahaye added that the company’s choice to side-line its United Kingdom customers also highlights the larger industry difficulties it confronts, such as claims of corporate mismanagement and financial instability.

Fessahaye further recounted the FTX ordeal, saying that it is impossible to ignore the scandal surrounding Sam Bankman-Fried, the former CEO of FTX – citing it as an example of the dangers that platforms and investors in the cryptocurrency industry confront, which has overtime led to a review of operational and governmental procedures in different countries.

The company, also in its statement stated that it will be resuming its operations by early 2024, (but did not specifically state when). Analysis has it that the company’s decisions may have been in connection with the declining price of its token sometime last year, which allowed the BTC to recover, and move up by 76% in 2023.

PayPal Disclose Negative Implications Of Unregulated Cryptocurrency Transactions

PayPal, in their statement, recalled that the effects of unregulated or improperly overseen cryptocurrency transactions are being felt in the real world, with millions of creditors in the UK alone potentially facing losses in the billions of pounds. It also emphasized that an estimated 80,000 Britons are listed as creditors, highlighting the global reach of these financial woes.

California-based PayPal entered the cryptocurrency market when it introduced PayPal USD, a cryptocurrency backed by the dollar and produced by Paxos Trust Company. PayPal USD gives some stability in contrast to the more volatile cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin because it is tied to a fiat currency. Also, the United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has announced its readiness to introduce tougher rules as a way to limit how operators advertise cryptocurrencies to their UK customers.

PayPal Release Date For The Suspension, Renews Commitment To Regulations

PayPal, in an official email to its customers, said that they will restrict the customer’s ability to buy cryptocurrencies in its platform starting from the 1st of October, as a way of complying with the new government regulations, while the operations officially stop on October 8.

The email went further to add that (PayPal) will continue to work with the appropriate regulatory authorities around the world to ensure a seamless, secure cryptocurrency industry that will benefit its customers. The decision by PayPal to halt cryptocurrency sales in the UK until 2024 marks a turning point in the continuing discussion about cryptocurrency legislation.

Recall, that PayPal, sometime in February, announced that it will be discharging 7% of its workforce, amounting to over 2,000 employees worldwide. This coincides with the ongoing speculation by industry watchers that the company may be having some internal challenges, amid its earlier affirmation to tackle macroeconomic problems in its business environment.