eToro has announced it will significantly reduce its cryptocurrency offerings in the US, following a settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
This comes after the SEC charged eToro with operating as an unregistered broker and clearing agency, facilitating the trading of crypto assets classified as securities.
eToro to Limit Crypto Trading in the US
As part of the settlement, eToro will pay $1.5 million in penalties and limit its US platform to only three cryptocurrencies: Bitcoin (BTC), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), and Ethereum (ETH). US customers have 180 days from the SEC’s order to sell any unsupported crypto assets. After this period, eToro will liquidate these assets and return the proceeds to customers.
The SEC’s investigation revealed that eToro has allowed US customers to trade crypto assets as securities without proper registration since at least 2020. This lack of compliance with federal securities laws prompted the regulator to take action, leading to the settlement.
“By removing tokens offered as investment contracts from its platform, eToro has chosen to come into compliance and operate within our established regulatory framework,” said Gurbir S. Grewal, Director of the SEC’s Division of Enforcement.
He further added that this settlement not only improves investor protection by ensuring that trading platforms adhere to federal securities laws but also establishes a clear regulatory precedent for other cryptocurrency platforms to follow.
Read more: 7 Best Crypto Exchanges in the USA for Bitcoin (BTC) Trading
This decision marks a major shift in eToro’s US operations, aligning its services with federal securities laws. As of September 11, 2024, US users can only open new positions in BTC, BCH, and ETH, and by March 11, 2025, they will only be able to close these positions.
Any remaining unsupported crypto assets will be liquidated by March 18, 2025, with proceeds transferred to users’ cash balances. Outside the US, eToro users will continue to have access to over 100 crypto assets.
“As a company serving over 38 million registered users from more than 75 countries, the terms of the settlement will have a minimal impact on our global business. We continue to experience strong growth and remain committed to becoming a public company in the future,” eToro’s Co-founder and CEO Yoni Assia told BeInCrypto.
For most US users, no action is needed. Only a small portion—less than 3%—of crypto holdings that cannot be transferred to the eToro wallet are affected. Assets that can be moved to the wallet can stay on the platform with no changes.
Moreover, Assia reaffirmed eToro’s commitment to compliance. He noted that the company has been offering regulated securities globally since before the invention of cryptocurrency.
“As an early adopter and global pioneer of cryptoassets as well as a significant player in regulated securities, it is important for us to be compliant and to work closely with regulators around the world. We appreciate the importance of regulation to protect consumers. We now have a clear regulatory framework for cryptoassets in our home markets of the UK and Europe, and we believe we will see similar in the US in the near future,” Assia stated.
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