- LocalMonero is P2P (Peer-to-Peer). A peer-to-peer trading platform for Monero (XMR), a privacy-focused coin.
- The platform is being scaled down and the website is scheduled to close on November 7.
LocalMonero, the largest P2P trading platform for Monero (XMR), is shutting down.
The peer-to-peer platform announced late Tuesday that it will cease operations effective immediately and that new sign-ups and ad posting will be disabled from May 7.
Ahead of the full website shutdown, LocalMonero will suspend all trading activities, which is scheduled for May 14. The platform’s seven-year run as the largest peer-to-peer trading platform for Monero officially ends on November 7. .
LocalMonero said the decision to close the store was made amid a combination of internal and external factors, as it began a six-month closure process. However, an announcement on the platform’s website does not provide a specific reason for the move.
Meanwhile, all users are encouraged to withdraw their funds before the November 7 deadline. Failure to do so may result in your funds being “abandoned or forfeited.”
LocalMonero is shutting down, but the future of Monero is “bright”!
Shutting down Monero’s largest P2P platform could see an impact in terms of buying and selling of XMR, the leading privacy-focused cryptocurrency. Nonetheless, the LocalMonero team believes that the future of the ecosystem lies in further growth.
“LocalMonero has been with Monero for most of its life. Fortunately, the Monero ecosystem has matured a lot over the past few years.” reads the notice.
Part of the optimism rests on the potential of projects such as decentralized exchanges (DEXs) Haveno and Serai. Atomic swaps and Full-Chain Membership Proof (FCMP) are other major developments that could strengthen the Monero protocol.
Despite this outlook, Monero and other privacy coins have faced increased regulatory scrutiny and exchange delistings in recent months.
A number of privacy-focused services have been shut down, including Wasabi Wallet and Trezor CoinJoin, and US authorities recently arrested the co-founder of privacy wallet Samourai Wallet.