By
Bena Ilyas
May 6th, 2024
Anyone who wishes to trade on the securities platform will complete the know-your-customer (KYC) and verification processes.
Hong Kong-based crypto exchange Bitfinex is debuting tokenized equities and bond trading by launching Bitfinex Securities. The exchange is the new trading platform by Bitfinex, allowing its consumers to have a share in the world of traditional finance.
With Bitfinex Securities, small businesses and even medium-sized companies will now be able to list their tokenized equities, funds, or bonds and raise capital. On the other hand, trading and investing in tokenized securities will be allowed on the platform.
Bitfinex Securities: New Possibilities
The new service by Bitfinex Securities is not similar to stock token trading available on other crypto exchanges. For example, tokens listed on FTX and Bittrex Global are tokens of stocks that are already public. However, Bitfinex Securities will be focusing on listing bonds, equities, or funds of private companies seeking to go public via a tokenized issue.
The company’s CTO, Paolo Ardoino, spoke on the newly-launched trading platform in an interview. The CTO said Bitfinex Securities aims to become the most liquid exchange of its kind globally. In a statement, the executive said:
“We are basically trying to eat the lunch of London Stock Exchange and other traditional stock exchanges.”
Furthermore, the exchange has revealed that it is based in Astana, Kazakhstan. In addition, the Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC) Authority is in charge of regulating the new exchange platform. Ardoino revealed that Bitfinex Securities has been trying to obtain a license in Astana for the past 18 months.
According to the exchanges’ head of compliance Tim Aron, the new trading platform has only received a conditional investment exchange license from the regulator. The conditional permit limits its operation to a sandbox environment. As such, the exchange will function under a conditional license until it obtains a full charge.
Speaking on the current conditional investment exchange license, Aron explained:
“We will operate in a very controlled environment. We have to limit the amount of capital raises at $15 million and the maximum number of customers at 1,000.”
CTO Ardoino has assured that the limits will soon be over as soon as Bitfinex Securities confirms with the authority that the first raises “went well.”
Interested Traders to Complete KYC and Verification Processes
Anyone who wishes to trade on the securities platform will complete the know-your-customer (KYC) and verification processes. Notably, the new exchange platform will not be available to US residents, same as its crypto trading platform. Other locations the securities exchange does not support include Canada, Austria, Venezuela, Switzerland, and Italy.
Notably, both retail and accredited investors will be able to trade on Bitfinex Securities. However, Aron noted that retail investors would only have access to issues of the entities that have issued a prospectus for their capital raises.