OKX Delists USDT in Europe Ahead of New Stablecoin Regulations

By: Eliza Bennet

Crypto exchange OKX is said to discontinue Tether (USDT) pairs in the European Union, making the move to only support USDC and Euro-based stablecoin pairs. This decision follows just days after the EU introduced draft technical standards related to stablecoins, which are expected to come into effect from June 2024.

OKX has switched off USDT trading pairs in Europe, indicating that only EUR and USDC trading pairs will be available for spot trading in future. The apparent message from OKX suggests the exchange aims to add 30 new trading pairs to cope with the delistings and cites regulatory requirements as the reason for variations in token listings across different regions.

Many believe that this recent delisting is connected to stablecoin regulations discussed in the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulatory scheme. With proposed guidelines for stablecoin issuer grievance procedures introduced on March 14 by EU authorities, it is expected that the enforcement of additional regulations in the initial months of 2024 may provide hurdles for exchanges working to comply with the new standards.

Under the new rules, only Electronic Money Institutions (EMIs) and credit institutions will be permitted to issue stablecoins. It's worth noting that Circle, the company behind USDC, is in a good position to meet these requirements, having applied for an EMI license in December 2023 to comply with the foreseen MiCA requirements.