Crypto Exchange WazirX to Delist USDC in Boost for Binance's Stablecoin

WazirX will automatically convert customer holdings into BUSD in an effort to boost the value of Binance's stablecoin.

By Michael Bellusci

Sep 19, 2022 at 3:32 p.m. UTC

Updated Sep 19, 2022 at 4:02 p.m. UTC

CDCROP: WazirX CEO Nischal Shetty (WazirX) — WazirX CEO Nischal Shetty (WazirX)

Michael Bellusci

Michael Bellusci is CoinDesk's crypto reporter focused on public companies and digital asset firms.

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WazirX is delisting stablecoins USDC, USDP and TUSD on Sept. 26. The Indian crypto exchange has also stopped taking deposits, according to a blog post Monday.

WazirX said withdrawals of those three stablecoins can occur until Sept. 23. The exchange will automatically convert those stablecoins in customer balances to Binance's BUSD stablecoin at a 1:1 ratio.

In August, Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao urged users of WazirX to transfer their funds to Binance after it was reported WazirX was being probed by Indian government agencies. Disagreements between Binance and WazirX also occurred at the time on the issue of whether or not Binance owns WazirX.

Binance said earlier this month it was going to automatically move customers' funds to its Binance USD stablecoin from alternatives, including USDC. WazirX said the auto-conversion will occur on or before Oct. 5.

BUSD, while technically the third largest stablecoin by market cap, is not nearly as popular as top tokens USDC and USDT; most of the asset sits dormant on Binance's exchange. But Binance's efforts to boost BUSD at the expense of USDC are paying early dividends for its adoption. Since Binance announced the transition, BUSD daily transactions have increased by an average of 15%, according to data website Nansen.

UPDATE (9/19/22 12:00 EDT): Add context from Nansen.

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