Coinbase Granted Crypto Asset Service Provider Approval in Italy

Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has obtained the approval of Italy’s financial regulators to continue providing crypto services in the country, the company said in a blog post on 18 July.

According to the announcement, the Italian anti money laundering regulator, Organismo Agenti e Mediatori (OAM), has approved Coinbase’s Crypto Asset Service Provider license, allowing the exchange to continue its existing services and launch new products in the country. The exchange noted it was one of the first crypto companies to meet OAM’s requirements, which was a testament to its “close collaboration and positive working relationship” with Italian financial regulators. Coinbase’s vice president of international and business development, Nana Murugesan, said in a statement:

“Building a constructive relationship with regulators in every jurisdiction in which we operate is incredibly important as we march toward our mission of increasing economic freedom in every corner of the world. As we continue to grow across Europe and other regions, maintaining our strong regulatory relationships will ensure that we will continue to bring to market the products that our customers want, through the most trusted and secure platform in the cryptoeconomy.”

While the exchange has been offering crypto services in Italy for years now — having launched its Coinbase card service in the country in June 2019 — the OAM had recently added new requirements for crypto companies wishing to provide services in Italy. Another popular exchange to have covered OAM’s new requirements was Binance, which in May received the regulator’s approval to provide crypto services in Italy.

While Coinbase serves customers from 40 European countries — through its dedicated hubs in Ireland, the U.K., and Germany — it is still looking to strengthen its relationship with European regulators. Murugesan noted that the exchange had already submitted registration and license applications in “several major markets in compliance with local regulations”.

Last month, the exchange announced it will be shutting down its tool for advanced traders, Coinbase Pro, in order to bring all of its services under the same platform. Its place will be taken by the “Advanced Trade” tab on the exchange’s main website, which will allow professional traders to use both general and advanced Coinbase features in one place.