Share this article
Stablecoin Issuer Circle Conditionally Registered for Digital Asset Services in France
France has been encouraging crypto companies to set up shop within its borders and take advantage of the clearer industry regulation than in the U.S.
Updated Mar 8, 2024, 7:03 p.m. Published Dec 21, 2023, 3:31 p.m.
Make us preferred on Google
Stablecoin issuer Circle obtained conditional registration as a digital asset service provider (DASP) from France's Financial Markets Authority (AMF) as the European Union's second-largest economy seeks to attract crypto companies looking for environments with greater regulatory clarity than they can find in the U.S.
To lift the conditions associated with the registration and start operating in France, the company needs an electronic money institution license, which it has already applied for, the company said Thursday. Circle's dollar-pegged USDC is the second-largest stablecoin by market cap, trailing only Tether's USDT. It also issues a euro-pegged coin, EURC.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
France has been encouraging crypto companies to set up shop within its borders and take advantage of its rules as the U.S. faces regulatory uncertainty. Earlier this year the European Union passed the Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) legislation, which will start taking force in the bloc's 27 member countries next year.
"The selection of France as our European regulatory base builds on the country's clear rules for responsible innovation in FinTech and digital assets, while leveraging France's dynamic entrepreneurial, technological, banking and financial services ecosystem," Dante Disparte, Circle's chief strategy officer and head of global policy said in the statement.
The company also named Coralie Billmann to spearhead its licensed operations in the country. She previously led high-growth tech sales expansion at investment bank JPMorgan and was treasurer for Europe Middle East and Africa at payments platform PayPal.
See also: Why France Is Emerging as a European Crypto Hub
More For You
More For You
Ripple's Brad Garlinghouse says CLARITY bill has '90% chance' of passing by April
The bill would clarify which digital assets fall under securities law versus Commodity Futures Trading Commission oversight.
What to know:
- Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse said he now sees a 90 percent chance that the long-debated Clarity Act will pass by the end of April, citing renewed momentum in Washington.
- The bill would clarify which digital assets fall under securities law versus Commodity Futures Trading Commission oversight, addressing long-standing regulatory uncertainty that Garlinghouse says has weighed on innovation.
- Ripple, which has spent nearly $3 billion on acquisitions since 2023 and is now pausing major deals to focus on integration, argues that both crypto firms and traditional financial institutions increasingly want clear rules as attitudes toward digital assets shift.
Top Stories
