Blockchain.com
Blockchain.com is a US crypto exchange, which operates via different legal entities across several jurisdictions. The main business is done via European entities in the UK, Ireland, and Lithuania. The company was founded by US citizen Peter Smith and his friends in 2011.
The crypto exchange operator claims to have 83 million wallets, and 37 million verified users with $1T+ transactions. They boast to have processed one-third of all BTC blockchain transactions. Largely without supervision because the company is not licensed but just registered.
Key Data
| Trading name | Blockchain.com |
| Domain | https://blockchain.com |
| Legal entities | Blockchain.com, Inc. (US) Blockchain (LT), UAB (Lithuania) Blockchain Access (UK) Ltd (UK) Blockchain Access (Ireland) Limited (Ireland) Blockchain.com (BVI) Limite) (BVI) Blockchain.com (BVI) II Limited (BVI) |
| Jurisdictions | United States, United Kingdom, Ireland, Lithuania, British Virgin Islands |
| Related individuals | Peter Smith Lane Kasselman Nic Cary Jim Messina Macrina Kgail |
The Legal Labyrinth
Until February/March 2022, clients in the UK and Europe (EEA) were serviced through Blockchain Access (UK) Ltd, an FCA-regulated agent of FCA-authorized e-Money Institute (EMI) Modelr FS Limited. Then, EEA clients were transferred from the UK entity to the Lithuanian Blockchain (LT) UAB, registered with the Lithuanian Financial Crime Investigation Service (FICS).
However, not all services for EEA clients are handled by the Lithuanian company. There is also Blockchain Access (Ireland) Ltd, which also handles the so-called Private Key Wallet services for customers in the United States and the rest of the world. In the U.S., Blockchain.com, Inc. has a money transmitter license in some states.
Scam Reputation
On Trustpilot, you can read the Blockchain.com reviews of customers complaining about non-payments and problems with the company’s KYC procedure.
We have received reports from Blockchain.com customers complaining about strange KYC checks that include temporary freezing of withdrawals. Blockchain.com asks verified customers to provide additional data and blocks withdrawals with the request. After sending the requested data, Blockchain.com does not contact customers again but leaves the withdrawal freeze in place. This seems to us to be a tactic to prevent and delay payouts. This, in turn, may indicate that Blockchain.com has liquidity problems. In any case, it is a serious cause for concern. Be careful with Blockchain.com at the moment.
