Crypto Exchanges Unite in Canada Ahead of the 2025 Parliament Elections

• Crypto exchanges are pushing for collaboration between regulators and industry players as 2025 elections approach in Canada.
• Cointelegraph's senior editor, Sam Bourgi, discussed Canada's changing regulatory landscape with Coinbase and Kraken at the Blockchain Futurist Conference.
• Binance, ByBit, and other exchanges had previously left Canada amid stricter guidelines.

Blockchain Futurist Conference took place in Canada, where industry players discussed the current and future state of Web3.

Specifically, US-based crypto exchanges Kraken and Coinbase debated on Canadian regulations and areas where Canada still lags.

Canada Proposes Crypto Regulation After QuadrigaCX Case

Canada's evolving crypto regulations have posed challenges for crypto exchanges.

The world's second-largest crypto exchange, Coinbase, previously urged Canadian policymakers to modernize the regulations at the Blockchain Futurist Conference.

Coinbase's country director for Canada, Lucas Matheson, highlighted that 85% of countries will roll out digital asset frameworks in 2025, but Canada plans to adopt its Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework only in 2026.

In 2019, approximately $190M in customer funds disappeared after QuadrigaCX's founder passed away with no backup access to the platform.

As a result, crypto trading platforms in Canada must now register as Restricted Dealers. The new guidelines require exchanges to follow Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Know Your Customer (KYC) regulations.

The world's biggest exchanges, like Binance and Bybit, halted their operations in Canada due to stricter regulations.

Unfortunately, today we are announcing that Binance will be joining other prominent crypto businesses in proactively withdrawing from the Canadian marketplace.

We would like to thank those regulators who worked with us collaboratively to address the needs of Canadian users....

- Binance (@binance) May 12, 2023

How Are Regulations Affecting Crypto Exchanges?

Kraken has become a leading crypto exchange in Canada by committing to a Pre-Registration Undertaking (PRU). Coinbase is also happy to commit to the new rules despite its recent regulatory battle in the US.

The exchange aims to expand its stablecoinsand digital assets servicesafter registering as a Restricted Dealer with the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA).

At the Blockchain Futurist Conference, Coinbase, Kraken, and Cointelegraph called for more cooperation with policymakersahead of the 2025 Canadian federal election.

We have a lot of frequent discussions with the regulator here in Canada, so there's a collaboration, it's very important for us to move the framework forward or kind of try to educate the regulator on new products or new usages. Alex Mehrdad, general manager for Kraken CanadaClosing Remarks

Leading crypto exchanges push for innovation and clearer frameworks in Canada's digital asset market. However, in light of the Canadian elections, only time will tell whether regulators will cooperate.

References

• Joint Canadian Securities Administrators/Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (CSA)

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