France’s financial authority approves Binance’s registration as digital asset service provider

By
Cointelegraph By Turner Wright
-
0
74

The Autorité des Marchés Financiers (AMF), the French authority responsible for regulating the financial market, has granted Binance registration to provide crypto services in the country.

In a Wednesday update, the AMF included Binance France SAS in its list of registered digital asset service providers in France. The registration was a step towards allowing the crypto exchange to provide crypto-related services in France including safekeeping assets, exchanging digital assets for other tokens or legal tender, and operating a digital asset platform.

According to the AMF, registration requires checks to ensure “good reputation and competence of the managers and for-profit owners” as well as compliance with anti-money laundering regulations and combating the financing of terrorism. Binance said in a blog post on Wednesday it would “significantly scale up” its operations in France after the registration approval, and planned to expand its team “to continue infrastructure development.”

“The French DASP and AML / CFT regulations set strict anti-money laundering and appropriate and appropriate requirements to meet the high standards needed to be regulated in France,” said Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao, or CZ.

The move to France signaled Binance’s latest expansion of its global operations, gaining in-principle approval to operate in Abu Dhabi in April. In March, regulators in the Middle East also gave the green light for the exchange to provide services in Bahrain and Dubai. The main crypto exchange has no formal seat at the time of publication, but is said to have gone to choose place “very soon”, apparently to reassure regulators – many countries authorities have previously issued warnings saying Binance was not authorized to provide its services to residents.

Related: Globe-trotting Binance looks to Ireland for ‘central’ headquarters

In November, CZ announced the launch of a $ 100 million – $ 115 million at the time – initiative called “Objective Moon” to develop the blockchain and crypto ecosystem in France and Europe. At the Paris Blockchain Week Summit in April, Binance’s CEO said France has “one of the most progressive and open-minded governments that could help develop pro-crypto regulations.”