SoFi to Exit Crypto Business Amid Increased Regulatory Scrutiny

SoFi, the popular online financial services company, has announced that it will be exiting its crypto business amid increased regulatory scrutiny. The company had been offering cryptocurrency trading services to its customers since October 2019.

SoFi said that the decision to shutter its crypto services was due to “uncertainty around the mandatory compliance frameworks for digital asset trading activities.”

In a statement, SoFi CEO Anthony Noto said, “Given the uncertainty around the regulatory landscape, we felt it was prudent to end the program.”

SoFi’s crypto services allowed customers to trade bitcoin and Ethereum, and made them eligible for USDC, a stablecoin backed by Coinbase.

The decision from SoFi comes as the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has begun to step up its scrutiny of the crypto industry. The SEC has issued subpoenas to crypto exchanges, and it has made crypto companies more aware of the need to comply with securities laws.

It is likely that other firms in the space will soon follow suit and exit the crypto market or at least limit their crypto services, due to increasing regulatory scrutiny.