- 19 July 2022
- Posted by: Cryptovalues
- Category: Companies, Cryptovalues News, EU Law, World News
With sixty days to register with the new ‘virtual currency exchange’ registry set up at the OAM, Coinbase announced that it has received approval from Italian regulators to offer cryptocurrency services.
In a statement released on 18 July, the US exchange said it will provide cryptocurrency services to Italian residents, adding:
“The new requirement implemented by the Organismo Agenti e Mediatori (OAM), has mandated that all companies offering cryptocurrency trading, custody or other services meet certain criteria.”
The news, even described as a ‘milestone’ by the group’s top management, comes at an objectively difficult time, both in terms of stock market performance and the news of the last few days with rumours of Coinbase’s insolvency growing wildly following the recent suspension of its affiliate programme and staff cuts, so much so that CEO Brian Armstrong had to step in and state that the company is well capitalised to weather the cryptocurrency winter without difficulty.
Nana Murugesan, Vice President of International and Business Development at Coinbase, said:
“Building a constructive relationship with regulators in every jurisdiction in which we operate is critical to advancing our mission of increasing economic freedom in every corner of the world.”
The final comment refers specifically to the Italian situation:
” The achievement of this regulatory approval is a testament to our close cooperation and positive working relationship with the Italian financial regulators.”
added Murugesan.
Coinbase’s competitor Binance also recently announced approval in several European regions such as Spain, France and Italy.
However, the recent decision by the European Parliament and EU states to tighten the rules on cryptocurrencies with the new law on crypto-asset markets (MiCAr) will have to be taken into account.
