- OpenSea blocked users that hail from Iran.
- US hardlining sanctions are pressing blockchain-based companies to comply with the rules in order to avoid getting under scanner.
- In November 21, an Ethereum software company, ConsenSys ousted some Iranian students from their coding unit.
OpenSea, the US-based NFT marketplace, has reportedly blocked users that hail from Iran, as per countless agitated collectors and creators.ย
The platform has zero-tolerance policy against a myriad of individuals including enterprises and even governments that constitute the US sanctions list. With Russia’s invasion of Ukraine being the headliner of the times, US hard lining sanctions are pressing blockchain-based companies to comply with the rules in order to avoid getting under scanner.
OpenSea spokesperson said that โUsers and territories on the United Statesโ sanctions list are barred from utilizing OpenSeaโs services, including purchasing, selling, and transferring NFTs, and our Terms of Service expressly prevent sanctioned users or users in sanctioned areas from using our services.”
Further, the spokesperson said that “We have a zero-tolerance policy for sanctioned persons or businesses and anyone who lives in sanctioned countries using our services. If we discover individuals who are breaking our sanctions policy, we immediately prohibit the accounts linked with themโ.
The spokesperson gave the statement by elaborating the company’s approach on boycotting sanctioned countries. While getting candid with CoinDesk, another representative revealed, โOpenSea blocks users and territories on the U.S. sanctions list from using our services, including buying, selling, or transferring NFTs on OpenSea.โย They added, โIf we find individuals to be in violation of our sanctions policy, we take swift action to ban the associated accountsโ.
New York based OpenSea which was founded in 2017 by Devin Finzer and Alex Atallah, is not the first instance of impositions that were a byproduct of strained geopolitics. As earlier on November 21, an Ethereum software company, ConsenSys, ousted some Iranian students from their coding unit.