Altcoin News: LocalBitcoins Suspended Service Users from Iran
May 25, 2019, by Marko Vidrih on ALTCOIN MAGAZINE
The Finnish company LocalBitcoins has closed access to its P2P trading platform to users from Iran without giving any reason, which is attributed to US sanctions. The company does not give explanations.
Since the beginning of the week, Iranian users have reported problems when placing new deals and updating previous ones.
“If you have an account already, you will be able to withdraw your Bitcoins, but you will not be able to use the platform for trading,” answers LocalBitcoins to an Iranian user who has encountered these problems.
Next, the platform placed on the page for the Iranian segment a message stating that, unfortunately, LocalBitcoins is not available in the selected region, since it is too risky for the presence of the platform.
LocalBitcoins is considered one of the most popular cryptocurrency platforms among Iranian users since it does not require information on international credit cards — something Iranians have been deprived of for decades — and allows users to work with their accounts in local banks.
According to Iranian users, in the event of problems with them, the consultants of the platform were open to solve them, which indicates awareness of Iran’s isolated banking system.
LocalBitcoins was also trusted by Iranian users, as it keeps funds in escrow until both parties finally confirm the transaction, which ensures security and reduces fraud.
“Since I was selling large volumes, LocalBitcoins were considered the best option,” said Iranian merchant Soroush Hakimi. — On local exchanges the situation is different: prices are in many cases unfavorable, and the total volume of assets is low. It’s hard to find a buyer for 2 BTC in one day. ”
Previously, many cryptocurrency exchanges, including Binance, Bittrex, and ShapeShift, have stopped offering services to the Iranian segment.
According to Milad Jahandar, director general of Iranian company Fintech Bahamta, inability to access LocalBitcoins as one of the few remaining viable options for Iranian users of cryptocurrency will lead to even greater fraud in this sector.
“Users will be forced to resort to individual transactions based only on trust, which increases the risk of fraud, restrains the development of the local cryptocurrency community and slows down the spread of Bitcoin,” he said.
Jahandar also believes that excluding users from any country for political reasons contradicts the very decentralized nature of Bitcoin.
Author: Marko Vidrih
