Coinbase Wins Operating License in Bermuda: Details
- Coinbase has won a Class F license in Bermuda under the Digital Asset Business Act as a part of its expansion of operations outside the United States.
- The Bermuda Monetary Authority has licensed the company, allowing it to operate both a digital asset exchange and a digital asset derivatives exchange.
- The exchange said that Bermuda “was chosen as one of our financial hubs” because of its “high level of rigor, transparency, compliance, and cooperation.”
- Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong confirmed a day earlier at UK Fintech Week in London that his company is planning to leave the United States.
Prominent crypto exchange Coinbase, based in the United States, continues to make moves in order to expand its operations outside of the country. The company is now gradually recovering from the losses it suffered in the bearish run of the crypto market in 2022. Interestingly, the crypto exchange, which is only bested by Binance in terms of trading volume, has announced that it has been given the legal green light to operate in Bermuda, a British Overseas Territory in the North Atlantic Ocean.
According to a blog post published on April 19, Coinbase, as a part of its “go broad and go deep approach,” aims to “further its mission of increasing economic freedom for every individual and business around the world.” The exchange has received an operating license from the Bermuda Monetary Authority, the financial regulator of the region.
The crypto exchange noted that “Bermuda was one of the first financial centers to pass comprehensive digital asset regulation in 2018, and its regulatory environment is long known for a high level of rigor, transparency, compliance, and cooperation,” while adding:
“Bermuda was chosen as one of our international hubs as the BMA is a highly respected and experienced financial regulator that is led by a world-class executive team and board of directors. The BMA is also a member of several international organizations and maintains close relationships with other regulatory agencies around the world.”
The Class F license won by Coinbase allows it to conduct a range of activities, such as token sales and issuance, while also giving it the permission to operate both a digital asset exchange and a digital asset derivatives exchange.
A report from Forbes published on April 19 stated that Coinbase is planning to launch a derivatives exchange in Bermuda as soon as next week, citing “a person close to the company” as its source. It is important to mention here that the crypto community on the social media platform Twitter believes that this could be the beginning of the end of the crypto exchange’s operations in the US.
Furthermore, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong confirmed a day earlier at UK Fintech Week in London that his company is planning to leave the United States. This is not the first time a crypto company is leaving the country because of the actions of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) under the leadership of Gary Gensler.
Armstrong has been vocally against the practices of the SEC, stating in a November 2022 Twitter post that it was the regulator’s lack of clarity in the crypto space that pushed investors to offshore exchanges, thereby losing money on platforms like FTX.
As reported earlier by BitcoinWisdom, Armstrong has asked the crypto investors to elect pro-crypto lawmakers.
“What we’re going to do is start putting out content where people can contact their congressman, donate to pro-crypto candidates, show up at town halls, make your voice heard,” said Armstrong. “We are going to elect pro-crypto candidates in this country to make sure that our success is ensured.”
A crypto journalist with over 3 years of experience in DeFi, NFT, metaverse, etc. Parth has worked with major media outlets in the crypto and finance world and has gained experience and expertise in crypto culture after surviving bear and bull markets over the years.
