Singapore-based cryptocurrency exchange Crypto.com continues to grow its presence in the MENA region with the receipt of a full payment service provider license from the Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB). The license will permit the cryptocurrency exchange’s local subsidiary to offer e-money and fiat services, including the issuance of prepaid cards, throughout the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states.
The GCC encompasses the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.
Bahrain is an active regulator
Crypto.com joins a small circle of crypto exchanges as entities licensed in Bahrain. Binance received a crypto-asset service provider license in Bahrain in March 2022, while BitOasis received a category 2 license in Bahrain this year. Crypto.com chief operating officer Eric Anziani said:
“Bahrain has been working to create an innovation-friendly crypto and fintech ecosystem, which has involved putting in place clear regulation that balances consumer protection with commercialization.”
In addition, the CBB has licensed its local Shariah-compliant Rain and CoinMENA exchanges.
The CBB also has a regulatory sandbox that has attracted OpenNode and JPMorgan to its projects.
Source: Eric Anziani
Related: Middle East regulatory clarity drives crypto industry growth — Binance FZE head
Crypto.com’s steady expansion
Crypto.com completed the process of receiving a virtual asset service provider license from Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) in November, having received a provisional license in June 2022. VARA-licensed virtual asset service providers are recognized throughout the UAE under an agreement reached earlier this month.
In August, Crypto.com partnered with Standard Chartered Bank to provide fiat currency services in United States dollars, euros and UAE dirhams in the UAE, thanks to support from VARA.
Crypto.com is regulated in Singapore, France, Australia, Ireland, Malta, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada and South Korea, among other countries. Crypto.com applied for a license in Hong Kong in February but has yet to receive it. It appears to have deemed-to-be-licensed status there.
The crypto exchange was registered in the Netherlands in July 2023, but not before being fined around $3 million by De Nederlandsche Bank for operating for over two years without a license.
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