Coinbase gets regulatory approval in France

Coinbase, the largest US crypto exchange, recently managed to secure regulatory approval from the French financial market regulator, the Autorite des Marches Financiers (AMF). With the registration in France, Coinbase can now officially offer digital currency services in the country. The move marks only the latest step in the US-based exchange’s European expansion strategy.

Coinbase gets one step closer to operating throughout the EU

With the new office in Paris, Coinbase will be able to create and roll out new products and services, not only for France but its entire European customer base. Furthermore, the exchange will also be able to build strategic relationships with numerous global banks that will now have nothing stopping them from working with the platform.

All of this suggests that getting the license in France was a crucial milestone for Coinbase. Gaining the MiCA license also allows it to “passport” its vast array of services to multiple nations in Europe. This also includes some of the continent’s largest markets, including Spain, Germany, the Netherlands, and Italy.

The Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) registration also authorizes Coinbase to engage in different activities within the French local market. That includes offering services such as custody of digital assets, crypto-to-crypto transactions, as well as buying and selling of digital assets in legal tender. And, of course, the exchange gets to operate as a trading platform.

As for the broader context of the EU, the MiCA regulation is expected to create a unified framework for all crypto firms to abide by. The regulation will make it possible for crypto-related companies, including Coinbase itself, to offer their services across the European Union. All that they would need is a VASP license granted by the regulators of any one EU country, and the entire European Union and all of its member nations would be open to them.

In other words, they would no longer have to go through separate registrations in each nation. As a result, any regulated crypto firm with a VASP license would open the doors to multiple markets with a single registration, which will significantly ease and improve the process of accessing these markets.

Coinbase establishes its EU headquarters in Ireland

It is also important to note the timing of Coinbase’s move into France. It happened at a rather interesting time for the exchange, especially since regulatory scrutiny against crypto, as well as crypto exchanges, is reaching its all-time high in its home country, the United States.

Throughout 2023 , the US SEC and the Department of Justice have been taking enforcement actions against numerous crypto firms. Coinbase itself got a lawsuit from the SEC in the early days of June 2023, as the regulator accused it of offering unregistered securities.

The allegations of illegal securities dealings supposedly made the exchange consider moving its headquarters out of the country, as several nations decided to invite the exchange to relocate into their space.

In the end, the exchange decided on Ireland as its central base for operations and regulatory oversight in the EU, but its main headquarters, for now, remains in the US. As for its decision to settle in Ireland, it likely comes after the exchange had positive experience in the country in the past.

Specifically, Coinbase has had a presence in Dublin for over five years now, after first entering Ireland’s market in 2018. It has a workforce of around 100 individuals in Dublin, and it already holds an e-money institution license and a VASP registration in Ireland. Apart from that, the company got a crypto license in Germany as well, but also several national registrations in other EU countries.