• Localbitcoins, the Helsinki, Finland-based bitcoin exchange founded in 2012, is closing operations after over a decade of service due to the “ongoing crypto-winter.”
• The company was originally established to drive global financial inclusion and peaked in its first few years but eventually centralized exchanges surpassed it.
• Despite launching an Android mobile app during the 2021 bull market, Localbitcoins never regained the volume it saw in 2017 and continued to decline.
Localbitcoins Closes After Decade of Service
Localbitcoins, the Helsinki, Finland-based bitcoin exchange founded in 2012, is closing operations after over a decade of service due to the “ongoing crypto-winter.” New sign-ups will be suspended as of Feb 9th 2023 and trading will be suspended seven days later on Feb 16th. Following this suspension users will only be able to withdraw their bitcoins within 12 months.
Driving Global Financial Inclusion
Originally Localbitcoins was established to bring bitcoin everywhere and drive global financial inclusion. It became popular for peer-to-peer trades globally but centralized exchanges eventually surpassed it leading Localbitcoins to become more prominent in regions without centralized trading options. Despite this peak period from 2013-2023 there were challenges that caused its demise including Know Your Customer regulations and ending in person trades which made the platform less appealing for peer to peer traders.
Launch of Android Mobile App
In 2021 during a crypto bull market and resurgence in digital currency prices Localbitcoins announced the launch of an Android mobile app however despite this effort they never regained their volume that was seen back in 2017 as statistics show that their current volume is as low as it was during 2015’s bear market.
Crypto Winter Impact
Ultimately regardless of efforts by Localbitcoins to overcome challenges presented by crypto winter they have been unable continue offering bitcoin trading services thus leading them to announce their closure on February 9th 2023 where new sign ups will be suspended followed by trading being suspended seven days later on February 16th with users having twelve months only able to withdraw their bitcoins before full closure takes place.
Conclusion
This news marks a sad end for one of cryptocurrency’s pioneering exchanges who strived for ten years towards achieving global financial inclusion through providing people with access to Bitcoin but ultimately could not survive against powerful forces like Crypto Winter which has caused many exchanges and companies across various industries alike struggle or perish altogether leaving behind lessons learnt about managing risk and sustainability when operating during volatile markets such as cryptocurrencies can present us with at times