Bitfinex Now Processing One Time USD Withdrawals
Online cryptocurrency exchange Bitfinex announced May 12 they are resuming fiat withdrawals for “specific customer profiles in certain jurisdictions.”
Read more: Research Paper Suggests Bitcoin Volatility Will Match Fiat in Two Years
They are processing these requests in 
descending order for customers who intend to withdraw a large quantity of funds. These withdrawals will be on a one-time basis until more options for the company arise.
The exchange also mentioned they started moving many of their funds outside of Taiwan. Between this action and other channels opening up to the company, Bitfinex noticed the price spread between them and other exchanges begin to narrow. Their press release also said,
As noted in our prior announcement, US correspondent banks continue to block international wires. USD, however, continues to flow domestically in Taiwan and other channels have been slowly ramping up as evidenced by the price spreads narrowing between Bitfinex and other exchanges.
However, the press release stated for time being the company can only process transactions over $50,000 until more channels for transactions become available and viable.
Bitfinex Problems and Closing Price Gap
This news comes after several weeks of halted fiat currency withdrawals at Bitfinex, which have caused fear and doubt to spread across the bitcoin ecosystem. Many actors in the crypto-space have compared the price spread engendered by Bitfinex’s policies as similar to what happened at Mt. Gox prior to its insolvency and subsequent fall from grace.
Jamie Redman, writing for bitcoin.com, echoed these sentiments: “Traders don’t feel confident in the market because of the 2013 Mt Gox scandal which shook the bitcoin community to the core…Price spreads began to happen slightly then picked up when Mt Gox suspended USD withdrawals.”
Nonetheless, the price spreads are starting to balance out along with Bitfinex’s announcement. At the time of writing this, Bitfinex was sitting at $1812, with most other exchanges hovering around the mid to upper $1700 range.
Artificial Bubbles and Bitfinex Reconciliation
These prices, however, do not mean that there are no bubbles propping up the bitcoin cap or price or artificially inciting a bull market. There could be a market run, but no one can guess whether that is true or not. Most of the time, market trends are impossible to predict. All the variables that influence value and price change regularly and rapidly.
Nonetheless, it appears that 
Bitfinex is poised to get their exchange running properly. They promised customers they are solvent, and said they merely encountered legal and technical difficulties. Their mission is still to allow the fluid exchange of currencies across disparate crypto-spaces.
Bitfinex thanked their customers for the dedication and patience they have shown while the company tries to overcome a myriad of hurdles. They said,
We are deeply grateful for the patience and forbearance that our customers and shareholders have shown us as we work to restore normal operations. We apologize for the inconvenience and look forward to resolving these problems in the coming weeks.
What do you think about Bitfinex and these price differences? Let us know in the comments section below.
Images courtesy of Shutterstock and BTC Report app
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