Indian crypto exchange WazirX has announced the delisting of major stablecoins Tether (USDT), Pax Dollar (USDP), and True USD (TUSD).
The exchange follows Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, in consolidating its stablecoin holdings into a single asset. In preparation for the delisting, WazirX has stopped deposits of USDT, USDP, and TUSD and will pause withdrawals of these stablecoins on Sept. 23, 2022, at 5 p.m. IST. It will then delist USDT, USDP, and TUSD on Sept. 26, 2022, at 7:30 a.m. IST.
Following the delisting, the exchange will convert all remaining stablecoin balances to Binance USD (BUSD), another stablecoin, “to enhance liquidity and capital efficiency for users.” Users can withdraw their holdings of USDC, USDP, and TUSD from their BUSD balances at a 1:1 ratio.
WazirX will also remove spot trading pairs for the three stablecoins. Binance and Paxos Trust issue BUSD.
On Sept. 6, 2022, Binance announced that it would convert Circle (USDC), USDP, and TrueUSD to BUSD for similar reasons.
WazirX ownership dispute
In July 2022, Binance CEO Changpeng ‘CZ’ Zhao decried claims made by WazirX CEO Nischal Shetty that Binance owns the Indian exchange. Shetty’s claims followed a 2019 Binance blog post in which the exchange said it had “acquired” WazirX, but no agreement was ever reached.
“Binance has never – at any point – owned any shares of Zanmai Labs, the entity operating WazirX,” CZ tweeted. According to Zhao, Binance provides wallet infrastructure for WazirX but the exchange manages its own know-your-customer processes, trading, and the initiation of withdrawals.
In August 2022, CZ advised WazirX users to move funds held in WazirX to Binance, following a probe by India’s Enforcement Directorate.
BUSD criticized by Circle CEO
BUSD successfully launched on the Avalanche blockchain and Polygon following the stablecoin conversions. The two blockchains add to the growing multi-chain footprint of BUSD as it already lives on Binance Smart Chain (BSC) and Ethereum.
On Sept. 8, 2022, Paxos Trust boasted the regulation of BUSD and USDP by the New York Department of Financial Services, unlike other stablecoins.
At the same time, Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire pointed out that BUSD is of little use outside of the Binance platform and that news about the exchange’s auto-conversion was being misinterpreted by the media. At the time, CZ confirmed that USDC deposits and withdrawals were still possible.
Data from Coinglass indicates most of BUSD’s trading volume in the last 24 hours happened on BSC. BUSD has grown to be the third-largest stablecoin by market cap at press time.
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