Gemini announces exit from the Canadian market

• Gemini
  exits
  Canadian
  market,
  citing
  strict
  regulations
  and
  compliance
  costs.
• Users
  must
  withdraw
  funds
  by
  Dec.
  31
  as
  all
  accounts
  will
  close
  by
  that
  date.
• Canada’s
  new
  crypto
  rules,
  set
  for
  2026,
  further
  restrict
  decentralized
  markets.

Crypto
exchange

Gemini
has
become
the
latest
platform
to
withdraw
from
the
Canadian
market,
following
in
the
footsteps
of
major
players
like
Binance,
OKX,
dYdX,
and
Bybit.

Gemini’s
departure
highlights
the
challenges
that
crypto
companies
face
in
navigating
Canada’s
increasingly
stringent
regulatory
landscape.

The
exchange’s
decision
marks
a
significant
shift,
as
Gemini
had
previously
described
Canada
as
a
critical
part
of
its
international
expansion
strategy.

Why
are
crypto
platforms
exiting
Canada?

Gemini’s
move
follows
a
broader
trend
of
crypto
platforms
exiting
Canada
due
to
rising
compliance
costs
and
complex
regulatory
hurdles.

Canadian
authorities
have
been
tightening
their
grip
on
the
crypto
market
since
February
2023,
when
the
Canadian
Securities
Administrators
(CSA)
required
all
crypto
exchanges
operating
in
the
country
to
sign

legally
binding
pre-registration
agreements.
These
agreements
came
on
top
of
existing
restrictions,
such
as
the
prohibition
of
margin
trading
for
Canadian
users
and
limitations
on
offering
stablecoins,
which
many
exchanges
found
challenging
to
adhere
to.

Though
Gemini
initially
complied
with
the
new
regulations
by
submitting
a
pre-registration
undertaking
in
April
2023,
the
evolving
regulatory
climate
has
proven
too
burdensome.
The
exchange’s
exit
echoes
that
of

Binance
and

OKX,
which
similarly
cited
the
high
cost
and
complexity
of
complying
with
Canada’s
increasingly
restrictive
rules.

Looking
ahead,
the
regulatory
environment
for
crypto
in
Canada
is
set
to
become
even
more
stringent.
In
April
2024,
the
Canadian
government
introduced
the
Crypto-Asset
Reporting
Framework,
which
will
come
into
effect
in
2026.

This
framework
will
require
crypto
service
providers
to
report
detailed
transaction
data
annually,
including
sensitive
client
information
such
as
residential
addresses
and
taxpayer
identification
numbers.

Gemini
Canadian
users
have
90
days
to
withdraw
funds

Gemini
issued
a
formal
notice
to
its
Canadian
users
on
September
30,
urging
them
to
withdraw
their
assets
by
December
31,
2024.

The
Winklevoss-founded
exchange
has
provided
customers
with
a
90-day
window
to
move
both
their
cryptocurrency
holdings
and
fiat
balances
before
all
Canadian
accounts
are
closed.

As
Gemini
bows
out,
Canadian
users
are
left
with
fewer
options
to
access
decentralized
markets,
while
global
exchanges
like
Coinbase,
Kraken,
and
Crypto.com
continue
to
operate
within
the
country’s
borders.