zkSNACKs has revealed plans to shut down its Coinjoin coordination service that allowed Wasabi Wallet users to increase their transaction privacy by mixing their coins with others.
The decision, effective June 1, 2024, comes as a result of increased scrutiny by financial regulators towards crypto mixing services, which they believe could facilitate money laundering and the evasion of sanctions.
“Throughout our history, we have always made efforts to operate under legal clarity,” zkSNACKs stated in its blog. “At this point, we need to regain more certainty before moving forward.”
While Wasabi Wallet itself will continue functioning as a standard Bitcoin wallet for sending and receiving transactions, the loss of its Coinjoin mixer significantly reduces its privacy capabilities. Other wallets like Trezor Suite and BTCPayServer that relied on zkSNACKs’ coordinator will also be impacted.
Max Hillebrand, zkSNACKs’ CEO, called it “an honor and privilege” to have offered the mixing service. However, the company seems to be yielding to the regulatory winds battering crypto privacy tools.
As authorities tighten their grip, Bitcoiners favouring financial privacy may have to look elsewhere or risk transacting in the open on Bitcoin’s radically transparent ledger.
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