New blow for Bitcoin: IBEX Pay leaves the American market.

IBEX Pay, a Bitcoin Lightning Network-based payment company, has announced its withdrawal from the U.S. market. Starting May 31, 2024, the company’s Bitcoin payment services will no longer be available in the United States.

This decision comes amidst increasingly challenging conditions for cryptocurrency businesses in the United States. This new event adds to an already long list of facts showing the willingness of U.S. authorities to oppose any initiative aimed at preserving privacy in the cryptocurrency sector:

• Closure of Samourai Wallet and arrest of its creators.
• Closure of the service AgoraDesk
• Confirmed sentence of 5 years in prison for the Tornado Cash programmer.
• Cessation of operations in the U.S. for the Bitcoin wallet Wasabi and the Phoenix Bitcoin Wallet provider.

IBEX Pay offered users a simple and fast way to make Bitcoin payments via the Lightning Network. The company also provided services to businesses, such as payment solutions and gateways.
On May 15, 2024, IBEX Pay announced the suspension of its services in the United States. The company’s Bitcoin payment services will therefore no longer be available in the U.S. territory:

After careful consideration, it was decided that as of May 31, 2024, all IBEX Pay services in the United States will be suspended.

After careful consideration it has been decided that effective 31st of May 2024, all IBEX Pay services in the USA will be suspended.

Thank you for the support you have given us and we hope to serve you in the future. pic.twitter.com/7AXiDwW7DI

— IBEX Pay ⚡️ (@IBEXpay) May 15, 2024

A Difficult Environment for IBEX Pay

This situation can be partly explained by the current economic and geopolitical context. The status of the U.S. dollar as a global store of value is increasingly being questioned, while new threats of banking bankruptcies loom on the horizon. Faced with this uncertainty, U.S. regulators appear more inclined to adopt a restrictive approach towards the use of cryptocurrencies that do not submit to their oversight. This is perceived as a potential threat to the traditional financial system.

In the face of this uncertainty, many companies fear that their activities could be declared illegal overnight. By closing or relocating their operations, they hope to avoid potentially costly legal battles. Other countries, such as Switzerland or El Salvador, have implemented more flexible and favorable regulatory frameworks for innovation in the cryptocurrency field.

And all these events might encourage users to turn to solutions that guarantee them real autonomy, such as LNBits or BTCPay.