European Crypto Exchange Bitstamp Gets Approval to Operate in Italy

UTC by Darya Rudz · 3 min read
European Crypto Exchange Bitstamp Gets Approval to Operate in Italy
Photo: Shutterstock

Recently, a few other digital assets exchanges have announced their expansion to Italy. Among them are Binance, BitGo, Coinbase, and Crypto.com.

Bitstamp, one of the oldest Bitcoin (BTC) exchanges based in Luxembourg, has obtained approval from the Italian financial regulator Organismo Agenti e Mediatori (OAM) to run its operations in Italy.

According to Bitstamp CEO Jean-Baptiste (JB) Graftieaux, the next step will be the expansion in Italy.

JB Graftieaux said:

“Italy is among the most important markets in Europe, and we are thrilled to provide its citizens with a safe and secure way to trade cryptocurrencies. This registration in Italy is part of our global plans to offer services across Europe and around the world.”

To operate in Italy, companies have to meet a number of requirements. They include implementing ad hoc policies and procedures to ensure compliance with the new Italian legal framework. Besides, companies willing to operate in Italy have to provide financial statements with data about the latest transactions. In general, the steps are to communicate to the OAM the intention to operate in Italy, comply with the legal requirements, and wait for the pronouncement of the OAM before starting their operations in the country.

The Organismo Agenti e Mediatori (OAM) governs financial agents and credit brokers in Italy as well as implements anti-money laundering controls. According to the OAM’s website, it can gather and exchange information provided by cryptocurrency firms on their clientele and operations with anti-mafia and anti-terrorism authorities in Italy.

Bitstamp launched back in 2011, being one of the first Bitcoin exchanges. Since then, it has been making trading easy, fast, and reliable. Present in over 100 countries, with offices in the UK, Luxembourg, USA, Singapore, and Slovenia, Butstamp offers as many as 74 assets to over 4 million customers across the globe, as of 2022.

Blockchain Adoption in Italy

Recently, a few other digital assets exchanges have announced their expansion to Italy. Among them are Binance, BitGo, Coinbase, and Crypto.com. The approvals obtained by these companies demonstrate Italy’s willingness and readiness to be a crypto-country, ready to embrace blockchain technology.

Earlier in July, Italy’s Ministry of Economic Development announced plans to offer up to $46 million in subsidies for developing projects that focus on blockchain, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and Internet of Things (IoT) technologies, beginning mid-to-late September. According to the Ministry of Economic Development, any blockchain, AI, and IoT application on production systems, education, agriculture, environment, infrastructure, tourism, information security, and aerospace can be considered for funding.

As of 2021, as many as 4,000 crypto assets were in circulation in Italy. As a result, the country became number 10 in terms of the highest crypto adoption.

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