eToro Agrees to Pay $1.5 Million Settlement and Reduce Crypto Services in the US
The financial services platform eToro has agreed to pay $1.5 million to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and significantly scale back its crypto services in the country following allegations of unregistered activities.
Only three cryptocurrencies (BTC, BCH, ETH) will remain available to US users, with eToro liquidating all other assets by March 2025 to comply with US securities laws.
Despite these restrictions, eToro will continue to offer over 100 cryptocurrencies to its non-US users while pursuing its plans to go public.
Reduction of Crypto Offerings in the US
By removing tokens offered as investment contracts from its platform, eToro has chosen to comply.
SEC
As part of the settlement, eToro commits to offering only a limited number of cryptocurrencies to its US users. From now on, only Bitcoin (BTC), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), and Ethereum (ETH) will be available. This decision is in line with compliance to US federal securities laws, an area the SEC has emphasized.
In a statement released by the SEC, Gurbir S. Grewal, the agency’s enforcement division director, highlighted that this resolution allows eToro to comply with the regulatory framework while enhancing investor protection.
Implications for US Users
We now have a clear regulatory framework for crypto assets in our domestic markets in the UK and Europe, and we believe the US will soon follow suit.
eToro
The agreement mandates eToro to liquidate all other crypto assets offered to US users within 180 days. Users have the option to close their positions or transfer their compatible assets to the eToro wallet. If no action is taken by March 18, 2025, the remaining positions in unsupported cryptos will be liquidated, and the funds will be converted into cash in users’ accounts.
Despite these restrictions in the US, eToro’s co-founder and CEO, Yoni Assia, downplayed the impact of this decision on the company’s global operations. He emphasized that the majority of users outside of the US will continue to have access to over 100 cryptocurrencies and that the company remains on track to become a public company in the future.
This case falls within a series of actions taken by the SEC against companies in the cryptocurrency sector. The commission has recently stepped up efforts to enforce regulations in this space, pursuing major players like Binance and Coinbase for similar violations.
