Blockchain Rolls Out Trading Feature for 22 States in the U.S.

This week the UK-based company Blockchain has announced it has begun to roll out buying and selling features for U.S. residents. Starting now Blockchain Wallet users from 22 states can sell units of bitcoin core from within the wallets interface and other digital assets like bitcoin cash and ethereum will soon follow.

Also read: Markets Update: Cryptocurrency Prices Rebound But Uncertainty Still Lingers

Residents from 22 States Can Use the Blockchain Wallet to Trade Cryptocurrency

The firm Blockchain (otherwise known as Blockchain.info) is one of the most popular and oldest cryptocurrency businesses in the space with over 22 million wallet accounts, according to the company. The firm has just announced that users from 22 U.S. states can now sell their bitcoin core from within the wallet (buy options will be available shortly). Out of all users the company’s CEO Peter Smith estimates that 30-40 percent of those users stem from the U.S. On January 18 the firm announced a partnership with a company called SFOX, a business that has contributed to “laying the groundwork for our Blockchain users in the U.S. to seamlessly buy and sell digital assets.”

“We are on a mission to build an open, accessible, and fair financial future, one piece of software at a time — This announcement brings us one step closer to realizing that mission by making the exchange of digital assets fast, easy, and inexpensive for millions of users across the US,” explains Blockchain’s announcement.

And this is just the beginning; in the coming weeks, users will also be able to buy bitcoin, and buy and sell other assets like ether and bitcoin cash.

Trading Will Open to More U.S. Residents In the Near Future

With Blockchain having a large user base stemming from the U.S. the company’s new feature service will compete with firms such as Coinbase. Earlier this week discussing the partnership with SFOX with the news outlet CNBC, the company’s founder Peter Smith said he was very optimistic about the future of digital assets. Smith also says it was easier to start the sell option first in order to control the initial launch more carefully.

“If we are prioritizing short-term gains, we would prioritize buy — that is what most people have done. But it’s really time to make sure we nail that experience,” Smith explains.

Information on how to trade within the 22 states can be found within the company’s support for trading bitcoin in the U.S. section. The process requires identity verification and the user must link a bank account. SFOX sends two small USD deposits to your bank account and once verification is complete users can sell their BTC using the wallet. The bitcoin core sell feature is currently available in Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, Idaho, Indiana, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, Montana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and Virginia.

“We’re looking to expand to new states in the near future,” Blockchain’s U.S. support portal notes.

What do you think about Blockchain Wallet offering trading services for U.S. users? Let us know in the comments below.

Images via Shutterstock, and Blockchain.

Want to etch a document into the bitcoin cash blockchain? Check out our bitcoin cash powered notary service here.