Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase, has recently announced that it has secured licensing from the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) allowing them to now provide trading and crypto custody services throughout Germany. In the announcement, the US-based firm confirmed that it now plans to function by the name of Coinbase Germany GmbH, depending on the licensing regime introduced just last year.
The recent announcement makes Coinbase the first-ever firm to be granted such a license from the BaFin, which also happens to be the first-of-its-kind throughout the European bloc. Speaking of the crypto firm’s strategic plan, the announcement stated that the licensure of Coinbase Germany was both a logical and exciting move in the company’s journey towards global expansion. In terms of GDP, Germany is the fourth largest economy on a global scale. It is also the only EU country at this moment in time to have presented a complete regulatory framework when it comes to cryptocurrency platforms.
Coinbase also discussed in its press release the already thriving scene surrounding blockchain and noted that Germany is, in fact, the second-ranking country after the US when measuring the amount of Bitcoin nodes being processed. The announcement revealed that Coinbase Germany GmbH is due to be launched in the next few weeks, intending to serve both new and existing Germany-based customers far more efficiently. The company plans to deploy brand new products and features with their local customer support unit, increasing localisation and service offerings.
Marcus Hughes, Coinbase’s Managing Director for Europe, stated:
Being awarded the license is the culmination of many months of hard work from the Coinbase team, in close collaboration with the BaFin. We look forward to bringing a best-in-class crypto product offering coupled with a secure, localized experience to our German customers.
A source revealed that there are many other crypto custody applications now reaching the ‘advanced stage’ of the review process of receiving a regulatory German license which are likely to receive a verdict from BaFin over the coming months. The German Financial Authority has no set deadline for responding to applicant queries and often requires more documents from applicants as the process progresses.
Coinbase went public on 14th April. The company stated earlier in April that the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had officially accepted its S-1 registration statement, meaning it is set to have the ticker symbol of COIN.
