Privacy Coins suffer another blow as LocalMonero closes

The stringent privacy-focused cryptocurrency crackdown is still unfolding and the latest victim  to be picked up is the localMonero which is  peer-to-peer trading platform for the Monero privacy coin that will ceasing operations. This gives rise the recent effort targetting of privacy coins and protocols.

LocalMonero abrupt closure

On May 7th, the company that facilitates Monero transactions, LocalMonero, declared that their registration of new users and offer of advertising landing sites were disabled immediately. The Crypto exchange will formally stop providing the channel for trading the crypto-asset spot and margin pairs of the privacy-focused crypto-asset on May 14. Although the Company cites “the convergence of internal and external factors,” it neglects to mention the precise rationale behind its choice of fully closing the operation.

According to LocalMonero, everyone should get funds from their accounts by November 7, when the website is shutting down. Any balance of these funds left in wallets on the established date may be considered forsaken.

The LocalMonero project hit the world in 2017 as an alternative platform of LocalBitcoins (and consequently a trademark of Monero). Now that the world has seen Monero go through some growing phases, LocalMonero aims to capture a share of the crypto trading platform market. The team stressed a bullish outlook on Monero by mentioning the next milestones, like Havnoo and Serai DEXes launches. They also said that privacy updates, earlier known as Membership Proofs (FCMPs), give them confidence that Monero’s future is bright.

However, this optimism does not eclipse the view of some as another avenue to make privacy coins and protocols impossible with Kraken’s decision to terminate Monero and others for customers in Ireland and Belgium in April.

The future of privacy coins

There are also worries that the entire privacy-centered digital currencies and services industry is disappearing fast. According to Seth for Privacy, a privacy enthusiast and a famous privacy advocate, “LocalMonero’s shutdown is a very sad day as the project managed to remain anonymous for almost five years.” Such a service, he underscored, played a crucial role in the no-KYC  Monero ecosystem. Seth For Privacy presaged that the move could be a symptom of the ongoing “all-out anti-privacy crypto war.”

The latest period, however, has seen the world’s financial watchdogs perched on an eagle’s view of privacy coins. In April, the founders of crypto blender Samourai Wallet faced charges of money laundering. More privacy services like Wasabi CoinJoin and Trezor Coinjoin also met the same fate as their counterparts, and their founders were also forced to shut down due to the increasing pressure.

As the regulatory sphere looks to find its way, the future of privacy coins with their fungible ecosystem looks unsure. For those in favor of privacy through cryptocurrency, and LocalMonero in particular, the closure of its website is an alert to the mind of the existing problems between privacy advocates and regulatory organizations.