Big news from Bitstamp on the regulatory front: they are now the first exchange with a proper national licensing. They acquired it through Luxembourg, and thus have gotten a regulatory position now in all EU member states as a result.
Additionally, they now offer a BTC/EUR pair, competing with Kraken's dominance in the € liquidity spot markets. As a promotional offer they are giving customers fee-free trading for 30 days for this new pair.
Their announcement is shown below:
Additionally, they now offer a BTC/EUR pair, competing with Kraken's dominance in the € liquidity spot markets. As a promotional offer they are giving customers fee-free trading for 30 days for this new pair.
Their announcement is shown below:
Dear clients, partners and supporters of Bitstamp,
We are very excited to share with you today that Bitstamp has been granted a license by the Luxembourg government to be a fully regulated and licensed exchange in the EU. This is an unprecedented moment for the bitcoin, and brings with it a new era of security and transparency to the industry. The news is the result of a rigorous application process with the Luxembourg financial regulator, the Luxembourg Financial Industry Supervisory Commission (known as CSSF) spanning nearly two years, which included security reviews in addition to an audit by Ernst & Young Luxembourg. Bitstamp’s license is passportable into the 28 EU member states providing all European customers with a robust, secure platform for bitcoin trading.
Establishing our EU base in Luxembourg, a country that is known for its long-standing history as an international leader in e-payments and data privacy as well as the European headquarters for many global players including Amazon, PayPal and Skype, Luxembourg embodies an exceptionally strong infrastructure and the financial and security awareness we were seeking for this process.