El Salvador grants its first crypto license to Bitfinex
Bitfinex became the first cryptocurrency exchange to be registered as a Digital Asset Service Provider (DASP) by the regulators in El Salvador.
The Latin American country is a pioneer in the industry, embracing bitcoin as legal tender in 2021. Under President Nayib Bukele’s rule, it bought volumes of the primary cryptocurrency at a macroeconomic level and launched a number of BTC-related initiatives.
“Happy to be the first”
In a recent blog postsBitfinex described the authorization obtained by El Salvador’s National Digital Asset Commission as a milestone in its long-term strategy “to deliver economic freedom and inclusion to communities and countries around the world.”
Paolo Ardoino – CTO of the platform – said the device is “delighted” to be the first with such a license. “It will enable Bitfinex Securities to facilitate the issuance and secondary trading of assets with clearly defined rights and obligations as outlined in the new digital asset regulatory regime,” he explained.
The registration will also allow entities (from small firms to governments) to raise capital and interact with investors operating in the asset class.
Jesse Knutson – chief operating officer of Bitfinex Securities – said that demand for products included under the new regulations, such as tokenized stocks and yield-bearing assets, has increased recently.
“Issuers are eager to access the digital asset market, attracted by the speed, cost-effectiveness and ease of issuance compared to traditional assets. At over $1 trillion in size, the digital asset market is still in its infancy, but growing tremendously fast,” he added.
El Salvador’s newest cryptocurrency regulatory framework – the Digital Asset Issuance Law – saw the light of day in January 2023 after receiving the green light from the National Congress. The main objective is to support financial innovation and economic growth in the region.
The country’s authorities plan to build on top of this legislation by regulating the activities of private and institutional investors.
El Salvador: The Land of Bitcoin
The small Central American nation, previously proclaimed the murder capital of the world, made headlines in September 2021 by declares bitcoin as an official payment method in its territory.
The government, led by President Bukele, initiated several projects related to the leading digital resource in the following years, such as the accumulation of BTC on a macroeconomic level, building a massive veterinary hospital where patients can use the asset as a payment method, and design a high-tech city.
The so-called “Bitcoin City” will be located near the volcanoes Conchagua and Tecapa and will use its geothermal energy to power itself. Needless to say, BTC will be the main currency, while the design of the city area will be in the form of a circle so that it can represent the coin’s logo when viewed from above.
Bukele recently highlighted the asset as one of the main reasons for El Salvador’s increased tourism levels and permanent heritage:
“We have increased tourism by 95% and it is partly because of bitcoin. There are many bitcoiners who want to travel to the country where bitcoin is legal tender, we have bitcoin conferences.”
