I am from the usa and have no problem with them banning us. But taking all of our coins and not giving any of them back is a definite no no. That's straight up stealing and justice will be served one way or another.
This is why it would have been advisable to leave with the 55% back when they were still BTC-e. I felt when watching everything unfold in September, that they were hinting that it was not safe for US users to move forward. It was only logical to assume that WEX would prohibit US customers, although I wish they had been more forthright about it before the launch of the new site.
That's an interesting take, and I'm tempted to agree. But it's also important to note that the indictment was brought in January 2017, and was merely unsealed when they arrested Vinnik in Greece. That means they probably investigated the exchange for months prior to proceeding with the indictment, back to 2016 or even earlier. So while the press release and media have sensationalized the Russian angle, it seems that the feds were looking into BTC-e under Obama, long before all this Russiaphobia began to come to a head around the Trump election.
Bitfinex might be getting out of the US just in time, though I doubt they are being targeted because they are not "Russian Nationals".
Bitfinex is definitely an interesting test case. They've pushed the envelope with Tether and their BFX tokens (both arguably derivatives or securities), and the whole Wells Fargo / banking fiasco gives me the shivers. I'm hoping for the best, but I would stay away from there myself.