Tag: Bafin

BaFin Declines to Classify NFTs as Securities, Recommends Case-by-Case Approach

by Blockchain News

The fact that there is now a discussion going on over the appropriate approach to classify these digital assets is reflected in BaFin’s decision to not recognize NFTs as securities. This argument has been going on for quite some time. Even if there are many who think of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) as investments or crypto assets, there are also others who believe that NFTs are nothing more than one-of-a-kind digital collectibles that have no value apart from the rarity or desirability of their presence. Despite the fact that some individuals regard non-traded stocks and bonds to be investments, this is the case. It is possible that, at some time in the future, the case-by-case method that BaFin utilizes will make it possible to get greater clarification about the classification of NFTs.

Yet, it is difficult to apply current legal frameworks to non-fiat currencies such as NFTs since these assets are not standardized and cannot be exchanged. This makes it difficult to apply existing legal frameworks. Those in charge of regulation are presented with a challenge as a result of this. The phrase “crypto assets” refers to non-fungible tokens that cannot be traded for other currencies and is an exception to this norm. BaFin is under the impression that non-financial transactions will not be in conformity with the licensing requirements outlined in the Payment Services Supervision Act, nor will they be subject to BaFin’s supervision regarding the prevention of money laundering. This is due to the fact that non-bank financial transactions are not regulated in the same manner that payment services are.

Notwithstanding the difficulties that are associated with recognizing them, non-fungible tokens are becoming an increasingly popular category of digital collectibles. This is despite the fact that identifying them may be difficult. The majority of non-fungible token (NFT) collectors acquire NFTs for reasons related to status, distinctiveness, and aesthetics rather than with the purpose of utilizing them as an investment, according to research that was undertaken by the metaverse site Metajuice. As the market for non-traditional assets (NFTs) continues to increase, the legal frameworks that control it will need to change in order to provide investors and collectors a higher degree of transparency and protection. This will be necessary in order to accommodate the market’s growing size.

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Bitpanda is Germany’s first “European retail” crypto platform.

by Blockchain News

The news that Bitpanda has secured a cryptocurrency custody license from the German financial organization known as BaFin was published in a post on the company’s official blog, where the announcement was made.

Following the acquisition of this license, the cryptocurrency exchange that maintains its headquarters in Austria is now legally authorized to market its services to individuals who are located in Germany.

In addition to this, Bitpanda said that they were the first retail bitcoin exchange to be founded in Europe to achieve this particular distinction.

As a direct consequence of the collapse of the FTX cryptocurrency exchange, people are paying more attention to cryptocurrency exchanges that do not have any rules and operate outside of a country’s jurisdiction.

Because of this, a significant number of exchangers are working toward obtaining licenses in various nations so that they can provide evidence that they are a trustworthy business.

Bitpanda is now legally regulated in the country of Sweden, joining the ranks of other countries like as Austria, the United Kingdom, Italy, the Czech Republic, and Spain. The number of nations in which Bitpanda is legally regulated has increased with the acquisition of this new license.

In the bitcoin sector, there were already four other businesses that have the license before Coinbase, Kapilendo, Tangany, and Upvest were able to secure it for themselves.

Bitpanda claims that it is the first “European” retail bitcoin platform to acquire the license since its headquarters are located in Austria. This is because Austria is considered to be part of Europe.

Since the collapse of FTX, the subject of how to give licenses to and otherwise govern cryptocurrency exchanges has been at the forefront of public conversation. Specifically, the question is whether or not cryptocurrency exchanges should be licensed at all.

According to Jon Cunliffe, who is the deputy governor of the Bank of England, the BoE plans to set up a “regulatory sandbox” in order to establish how to successfully supervise exchanges in order to discover how to properly oversee exchanges. In addition, the Senate of the United States has started conducting hearings to study efficient methods to regulate cryptocurrency exchanges. These hearings are being held as part of an ongoing investigation.

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Coinbase Ordered by BaFin to Ensure Proper Business Reorganization

by Blockchain News

The German offshoot of American cryptocurrency trading firm, Coinbase Global Inc has been ordered by the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority known as BaFin to ensure it achieves a proper business organization.

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For the order that came into effect at the end of October became necessary as the regulator said it found a number of inconsistencies in some aspects of the company’s operations when it conducted an audit of its financial statement. 

BaFin specifically noted that Coinbase is directly violating the standards put forth by the German Banking Act. 

The press release issued by the regulator made reference to Section 25a (1) of the Act, a provision that mandates companies to maintain adequate risk management procedures. Additionally, the section of the law also requires firms tagged as GmbH to maintain adequate staffing, as well as putting adequate emergency processes bordering on its information technology system and employee remuneration.

“An audit of the annual financial statements revealed organizational deficiencies at the institute. The regularity of the business organization was not given in all audited areas,” the regulator noted in its statement.

Germany remains one of the countries with robust and clear regulations for the cryptocurrency ecosystem. 

Despite its positive leanings toward the crypto ecosystem, Germany has maintained a cautious stance alongside other economies in a bid to protect investors from uncertainties that are tied to the nascent crypto ecosystem as seen by the collapse of many crypto heavyweights including Celsius Network, Voyager Digital and Three Arrows Capital (3AC) amongst others.

Coinbase was licensed by BaFin to provide custody-related services last year, marking one of the exchange’s ambitious pushes into the European Union. With the major correction on its internal controls and risk management measures, Coinbase Germany will have to heed the BaFin’s directives in a bid to continue serving its customers in the country.

Image source: Shutterstock

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DLT Finance Receives BaFin Licenses to Launch Trading Platform for Digital Assets

by Blockchain News

DLT Finance Group, a financial services company, based in Frankfurt, Germany, announced on Tuesday that it has received nine BaFin licenses that gave its approval to launch a digital asset platform targeting global financial institutions.

With the regulatory approval, the digital asset platform now offers a wide variety of regulated digital asset services, including brokerage, trading, custody, staking, and DeFi protocols.

DLT Finance disclosed that its new suite of digital asset solutions includes the following: prime brokerage, direct market access to a dozen liquidity venues, OTC Trading, deposits and withdrawals of crypto for instant trading, crypto custody, facilitation of relevant compliance processes, staking, and access to DeFi and liquidity mining, as well as borrowing and lending.

DLT Finance stated that it designed the digital asset platform to cater to institutional clients’ needs, such as banks, brokers, asset managers, and crypto exchanges, among others.

DLT Finance revealed that it has already partnered with major firms within the digital asset space, including Kraken, Bitstamp, B2C2, and Bittrex.

DLT Finance empowers its customers with one API to seamlessly integrate crypto products into their platforms through its platform.

The unique BaFin licensing arrangement offers an innovative regulatory solution for digital asset markets. DLT Finance said that its customers no longer need their own license, as they can trade legally and securely with the company.

The digital asset platform acts as an institutional counterparty where clients can trade on leading liquidity venues and choose from financial commission brokerage, OTC and direct market access. Customers can also stake assets directly from their custody and access to liquidity mining pools and the world of DeFi.

Furthermore, DLT Finance mentioned its digital asset platform facilitates regulatory compliance of digital asset custody for its clients, offers custom solutions for crypto derivatives, and issuance and placement for tokenized or traditional securities. The platform is streamlined with API access and direct online banking integration.

While existing solutions only facilitate closed-end systems, DLT Finance empowers its customers to create an open system in which assets can be directly deposited and withdrawn. Such developments are set to improve access and regulatory cover for digital assets significantly, thus attracting new participants into the crypto landscape.

 

Image source: Shutterstock

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DLT Finance Receives BaFin Licenses to Launch Trading Platform for Digital Assets

by Blockchain News

DLT Finance Group, a financial services company, based in Frankfurt, Germany, announced on Tuesday that it has received nine BaFin licenses that gave its approval to launch a digital asset platform targeting global financial institutions.

With the regulatory approval, the digital asset platform now offers a wide variety of regulated digital asset services, including brokerage, trading, custody, staking, and DeFi protocols.

DLT Finance disclosed that its new suite of digital asset solutions includes the following: prime brokerage, direct market access to a dozen liquidity venues, OTC Trading, deposits and withdrawals of crypto for instant trading, crypto custody, facilitation of relevant compliance processes, staking, and access to DeFi and liquidity mining, as well as borrowing and lending.

DLT Finance stated that it designed the digital asset platform to cater to institutional clients’ needs, such as banks, brokers, asset managers, and crypto exchanges, among others.

DLT Finance revealed that it has already partnered with major firms within the digital asset space, including Kraken, Bitstamp, B2C2, and Bittrex.

DLT Finance empowers its customers with one API to seamlessly integrate crypto products into their platforms through its platform.

The unique BaFin licensing arrangement offers an innovative regulatory solution for digital asset markets. DLT Finance said that its customers no longer need their own license, as they can trade legally and securely with the company.

The digital asset platform acts as an institutional counterparty where clients can trade on leading liquidity venues and choose from financial commission brokerage, OTC and direct market access. Customers can also stake assets directly from their custody and access to liquidity mining pools and the world of DeFi.

Furthermore, DLT Finance mentioned its digital asset platform facilitates regulatory compliance of digital asset custody for its clients, offers custom solutions for crypto derivatives, and issuance and placement for tokenized or traditional securities. The platform is streamlined with API access and direct online banking integration.

While existing solutions only facilitate closed-end systems, DLT Finance empowers its customers to create an open system in which assets can be directly deposited and withdrawn. Such developments are set to improve access and regulatory cover for digital assets significantly, thus attracting new participants into the crypto landscape.

 

Image source: Shutterstock

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Bitcoin-based security token offering approved in Germany

by Cointelegraph

German financial regulators have approved a security token offering (STO) based on a Bitcoin (BTC) sidechain.

Germany’s Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) has greenlighted the EXOeu token by game publisher Exordium, making local retail investors eligible to participate in the sale on Stokr, a major European digital marketplace.

German investors can invest in EXOeu via Stokr with a minimum investment amount of $100. EXOeu is the second STO ever approved for the German market on Stokr after BaFin approved an STO by parking network ParkinGO last year.

Launched in January 2021, the EXOeu security token is raising funds for the development of Samson Mow’s sci-fi MMO game Infinite Fleet. The offering has been available for investors in other European countries lik France, Luxembourg, Spain, Portugal, raising more than $7 million to date.

While many STOs are based on the Ethereum blockchain, the EXOeu token is issued via Blockstream Amp, a platform for tokenizing securities built on the Liquid sidechain of Bitcoin.

“Bitcoin is shaping payments, and it’s about time it shaped capital markets — this can be done via layer two technologies,” Stokr co-founder Arnab Naskar said, adding that Ethereum is “losing its charm” as an STO platform due to high gas fees and the uncertainty around Ethereum 2.0.

Related: Bitfinex launches security token platform regulated in Kazakhstan

According to Stokr co-founder Tobias Seidl, BaFin’s approval of Exordium’s STO marks a new milestone in cross-border blockchain-based STOs. “We see Bitcoin as a fundamental backbone of the future capital markets, which will be built on blockchains,” he said.

The news comes shortly after major crypto exchange Bitfinex announced last week that it would debut its own STO trading platform with Exordium (EXO) trading.