The Huobi cryptocurrency exchange is seeking to boost its global presence. To achieve this, the exchange has secured a license in the British Virgin Islands. The license was issued by the Financial Services Commission (FSC).
Huobi secures license in the British Virgin Islands
The Huobi exchange announced that it had received an investment business license from the regulatory agency of the British Virgin Islands, the FSC. The approval of the license now allows Huobi to run a virtual asset exchange in the jurisdiction under the Brtuomi Worldwide Limited (BWL) subsidiary.
The announcement has also said that BWL is planning to provide multiple cryptocurrency trading services, such as spot trading for different cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ether. It will also offer derivatives trading.
Huobi has positioned itself as the leading digital asset trading company in the British Virgin Islands. The exchange has been licensed to operate an institutional-grade cryptocurrency trading platform that retail and institutional investors can use.
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The chief financial officer for Huobi Group, Lily Zhang, commented on the development saying that the license would have a significant impact on institutional investors in the country, adding that it would make Huobi the first exchange that offers compliant crypto derivative products and trading services in the region.
According to Zhang, the British Virgin Islands had many institutional investors in the cryptocurrency sector. Therefore, operating in the region presented a large market opportunity for the exchange.
Zhang also said that Huobi has a distributed ledger technology license in Gibraltar. The exchange does not have a clear timeframe for expanding its services in the United Kingdom. However, it is still interested in moving into the UK as it also seeks a broader presence globally.
BWL is a member of the financial innovation sandbox supported by the FSC. Records from the regulator show that BWL is the second participant to be approved by the FSC for the sandbox. The sandbox was created in 2020 to support innovations within the fintech sector.
Zhang added that Huobi would be working alongside regulators in the British Virgin Islands to create a suite of licensed trading products and services while supporting the growth of the cryptocurrency industry.
Crypto activities in the British Virgin Islands
The British Virgin Islands boasts of a large number of cryptocurrency companies. The fourth annual global crypto hedge fund report by PWC in 2022 shows that the British Virgin Islands overtook the US to become the second-most preferred location for crypto hedge funds companies.
Three Arrows Capital is one of the crypto hedge funds operating in the British Virgin Islands. In June, a court in the region ordered the liquidation of the bankrupt crypto hedge fund. The FSC had registered 3AC as a professional fund.
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