Crypto Exchange Orca to Block U.S. Traders From Website
The top decentralized exchange on Solana will restrict U.S. trading activity on orca.so beginning on March 31.
:format(jpg)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/coindesk/YLP7LB3Q4FBFTPOW33WNT7P3KY.jpg)
Orca founders Yutaro Mori (left) and Ori Kwan (Danny Nelson/CoinDesk)
/arc-photo-coindesk/arc2-prod/public/LXF2COBSKBCNHNRE3WTK2BZ7GE.png)
Decentralized crypto exchange Orca will restrict U.S. users from trading coins via the front end of its website beginning on March 31, a blow to accessibility for the Solana blockchain’s top DEX.
In a notice published to its website Thursday, Orca said it is “adding the United States to the regions and countries which are restricted from trading on orca.so,” its website The notice didn't provide a reason for the move or why it was coming now. Orca co-founder Grace Kwan didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.
The policy change won't affect traders who directly use Orca’s smart contracts – the infrastructure executing token swaps on-chain. That may provide some reprieve for trading volume because much of Orca’s order flow comes via Jupiter, a trade aggregator that plugs into Orca's back end.
Orca had $280 million in trading volume over the last week, according to DefiLlama. That was nearly three times more than the trading volume on Raydium, Solana’s second-most popular decentralized-finance trading venue.
Orca keeps trades flowing by pooling token liquidity from its users. They loan their assets to the exchange and get a slice of fee revenue in return. The new restrictions don't apply to U.S.-based liquidity providers, according to the notice.
Disclosure
Please note that our privacy policy, terms of use, cookies, and do not sell my personal information has been updated.
The leader in news and information on cryptocurrency, digital assets and the future of money, CoinDesk is an award-winning media outlet that strives for the highest journalistic standards and abides by a strict set of editorial policies. In November 2023, CoinDesk was acquired by Bullish, a cryptocurrency exchange, which in turn is owned by Block.one, a firm with interests in a variety of blockchain and digital asset businesses and significant holdings of digital assets including bitcoin and EOS. CoinDesk operates as an independent subsidiary, and an editorial committee, chaired by a former editor-in-chief of The Wall Street Journal, is being formed to support journalistic integrity.
Learn more about Consensus 2024, CoinDesk's longest-running and most influential event that brings together all sides of crypto, blockchain and Web3. Head to consensus.coindesk.com to register and buy your pass now.