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Coinbase is delisting Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC) after just announcing the expansion of its cbBTC.
Earlier this month, Coinbase said it would introduce cbBTC to Solana, which allows users to send Bitcoin to Coinbase, receive cbBTC in their Solana wallet, and trade it in Solana's DeFi protocols.
Blockhead
cbBTC is positioned to be Solana's standard for Bitcoin-based DeFi with Coinbase entering the scene with $10 million worth of cbBTC available to Solana protocols and an additional $500,000 circulating in trading pools and reserves. This is hoped to boost liquidity and attract stronger adoption.
In an announcement yesterday, Coinbase said it will suspend trading for wBTC on 19 December, stating "We regularly monitor the assets on our exchange to ensure they meet our listing standard."
We regularly monitor the assets on our exchange to ensure they meet our listing standards. Based on our most recent review, Coinbase will suspend trading for wBTC (wBTC) on December 19, 2024, on or around 12pm ET.
— Coinbase Assets 🛡️ (@CoinbaseAssets) November 19, 2024
While trading will be suspended on Coinbase.com, Coinbase Exchange and Coinbase Prime, wBTC funds will still remain accessible to users, who will be able to withdraw the funds at any time. Coinbase added that it has moved its wBTC order books to limit-only mode.
The move has been linked to the controversy surrounding WBTC's custodian BitGo's decision to enter a joint venture deal with BitGlobal, which was co-founded by Justin Sun.
Sun's involvement has stirred significant industry controversy, prompting major players like Coinbase and Kraken to introduce their own tokenized Bitcoin solutions.
Coinbase's cbBTC launch drew sharp criticism from Sun, who questioned the exchange's transparency over its failure to complete a proof-of-reserves process.
"#cbbtc lacks Proof of Reserve, no audits, and can freeze anyone's balance anytime. Essentially, it’s just 'trust me.' Any U.S. government subpoena could seize all your BTC. There’s no better representation of central bank Bitcoin than this. It’s a dark day for BTC," Sun tweeted in September.
#cbbtc lacks Proof of Reserve, no audits, and can freeze anyone's balance anytime. Essentially, it’s just 'trust me.' Any U.S. government subpoena could seize all your BTC. There’s no better representation of central bank Bitcoin than this. It’s a dark day for BTC.
— H.E. Justin Sun🌞(hiring) (@justinsuntron) September 12, 2024
Ironically, Sun-owned Poloniex, which operates a larger tokenized Bitcoin on the Tron blockchain, has also never completed a proof-of-reserves process.
