Coinbase Barclays relationship is no more! The Coinbase Barclays was the most prestigious banking relationship that crypto had – luckily, Coinbase has found a new replacement in the UK.
Barclays, a London-based global bank, has ended their working relationship with Coinbase. Coinbase, to their credit, has tapped ClearBank, a UK Upstart bank, to take its place. It goes without saying, but Coinbase customers have been inconvenienced by this update.
This is because the Barclays name had connected the San Francisco-based Coinbase to the UK’s Faster Payments Scheme (FPS) which allowed users to instantly withdraw and deposit British pounds at the exchange. The end of this relationship means that UK customers no longer have access to FPS. Withdrawals and deposits in GBP for UK Coinbase users will revert back to days instead of seconds to process.
The situation is temporary, however, as Coinbase’s new relationship with ClearBank will restore Coinbase’s access to FPS by the end of the third quarter. All three companies, Barclays, ClearBank, and Coinbase have declined to comment.
This is not the first time that a crypto company’s relationship with a financial institution has failed. Most all big-name banks eschew cryptocurrency. The Coinbase Barclays relationship first started in 2018 – it was this initial relationship that got Coinbase access to an e-money license by the UK Financial Conduct Authority and was the first crypto company to be given access to FPS.
Since early 2018, Barclays has apparently gotten cold feet about crypto clients – there are plenty of rumors as to why, but nobody knows the exact reason for it.
Coinbase, to its credit, has done things to try to conform to the wishes of its partners. Coinbase recently de-listed zcash, the privacy-centric cryptocurrency. A person familiar with the decision said the decision had everything to do with the new bank. ClearBank was rumored to have been uncomfortable indirectly supporting a cryptocurrency with features that make law enforcement’s job harder.
What do you think? We’ve seen bullish news the last few weeks – but with every two steps forward, we seem to be taking a step back. Let us know what you think on our Facebook page!
