Circle Gets the First BitLicense by NYDFS and Launches Circle Pay

Have you always had interest in bitcoin but didn’t dare to get fully involved due to unreliable nature of the cryptocurrency? We have good news for you! To be more exact you should thank Circle, a digital currency company founded in 2013 by Internet entrepreneurs Jeremy Allaire and Sean Neville and backed by leading venture capital investors.

First of all it’s necessary to point out that Circle has recently become the first company to get a bitcoin license from New York State’s financial regulator. The company used to come out into the open about its dissatisfaction with the BitLicense.

Some kind of compromise must have been found and Circle agreed to the irrefutable requirements for operating with bitcoin. The company owns a Money Transfer License as well. The latter enables regulated activity with US dollars in New York State.

Superintendent of the Department of Financial Services Anthony Albanese commented on the event: “Issuing the first BitLicense is an important milestone in the long-term development of the virtual currency industry. Putting in place rules of the road is vital to building trust in this new financial technology.”

Getting the BitLicense is not the only cheering news that Circle has for bitcoin enthusiasts. It has just officially introduced the Circle app developed specifically for those who seek for free, safe and instant transactions and don’t want to run the risk because of volatility of a particular currency. The app is called Circle Pay and is already available in the iOS and Android app stores.

Circle promises the possibility to make bitcoin transactions without necessity to buy bitcoin itself. You can choose what currency you want to hold on your Circle account. Even if you trust US dollars more, you can still send someone bitcoin and conversely.

Sean Neville, co-founder and president of Circle, underlined in his statement that the company sets the main long-term goal of “making sending and receiving money instant, secure and free for people around the world”.

Circle provides the following list of app’s innovative features in the official announcement:

• Higher limits for cashing in, spending, and cashing out. Most customers will start with a $300 USD weekly limit and have the opportunity to graduate to $3,000. These limits are much higher than our previous levels!
• FDIC insurance on US dollar deposits, which complements our existing full insurance protection over customer bitcoin funds.
• Many mobile app improvements including easier, faster account signup. Now when you send a friend money, that friend will have a simpler time signing up with Circle to receive it.

Having a Circle account means that you can switch between currencies paying no fee for this. Circle doesn’t limit itself to dollar only – the next currencies to add will be euro and pound sterling. The company also reveals plans to work with Chinese yuan in the future.

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