U.S.-based cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has made trading of Stellar’s Lumen (XLM) and Chainlink’s LINK token available in New York.
The two announcements were made on 25 September, via the exchange’s official Twitter account. The two cryptocurrencies, which were made available for trade in other jurisdictions months ago, can now be bought and sold by residence of New York through Coinbase.com, and through the exchange’s iOS and Android apps.
LINK, an Ethereum-based token used to power Chainlink’s decentralized network, was launched in most jurisdictions in June, while XLM, the native token of the Stellar crypto-based payment system, was made available back in March.
The delay in launching these two cryptocurrencies in New York is most likely due to the stringent regulatory hurdles in the state. New York became known for its tough cryptocurrency regulations in 2015, when it introduced the BitLicense. This requirement made many crypto companies leave the state, and stop offering their services to residents of the state.
Coinbase recently announced that it is considering adding 17 new cryptocurrencies to its lineup, some of which are still not live. The exchange also suggested that trading of these assets might not start everywhere at the same time, saying that new assets will be added on a “jurisdiction-by-jurisdiction basis, subject to applicable review and authorizations”.