Coinbase suspends WikiLeaks shop over violation of services

WikiLeaks

WikiLeaks Shop, the branch of non-profit publishing organization Wikileaks responsible for merchandising sales, announced on Friday that massive cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has banned their cryptowallet account.

The organization broadcast the news on their social media Twitter account with a screen image of the notice the exchange had sent them.

Wikileaks Shop is the whistleblower site’s outlet and sells a number of different Wikileaks branded items such as shirts, coffee mugs, and posters. Users are able to make purchases on the store’s site using credit card services or via a variety of cryptocurrencies If Coinbase shuts down access to the account, it could mean that the organization won’t be able to collect payment through the exchange in order to convert the money into dollars through the service.

Hours after the announcement was posted on the social media platform, a tweet came from the official WikiLeaks account calling for a boycott of the exchange’s services.


This sparked a reaction from prominent cryptocurrency figures who took to social media to comment on the issue. Bitcoin advocate and well-known blockchain enthusiast Andreas M. Antonopoulos points out that this the situation is dripping with irony – at the beginning of the decade, the US government had issued a banking blockade against Wikileaks which resulted in the organization turning to cryptocurrency at one of the most lucrative opportunities. Although not advocating for Coinbase, Antonopolous expressed disappointment in the exchange.

Meanwhile, Coinbase has not given an explicit reason for the block or expressed which services Wikileaks might have violated. The exchange has declined to comment on the matter.

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