Bitfinex Securities Granted El Salvador’s First Digital Assets License
Bitfinex Securities El Salvador, a regulated digital asset exchange, has become the first international digital asset platform to receive approval to be licensed as a Digital Asset Service Provider under El Salvador’s new Digital Assets Issuance Law. The license 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.
Bitfinex Securities El Salvador has become the world’s first international digital asset platform to receive approval to be licenced as a Digital Asset Service Provider under El Salvador’s ground-breaking new Digital Assets Issuance Law. https://t.co/VX1PDwKspZ
— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) April 12, 2023
First-ever Digital Assets License
The license approval is a significant milestone for Bitfinex in its long-term strategy to deliver financial freedom and inclusion to communities and countries around the world, as outlined in the Bitfinex Freedom Manifesto. According to Paolo Ardoino, Chief Technology Officer of the Bitfinex group, the new license will allow a range of entities, from small companies to governments, to raise capital in a regulated environment and tap into a class of investors that are comfortable with crypto assets and tokenized securities, which represents a market of over $1 trillion with a peak of $3 trillion.
The Digital Asset Issuance Law was passed by El Salvador’s National Congress in January 2023 to foster increased financial innovation and growth in the Central American country. As the world’s first nation to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender in 2021, El Salvador is now building on this foundation, paving the way for a more inclusive and accessible financial environment for both foreign and domestic companies, as well as retail and institutional investors.
New Era of Digital Asset Issuance and Trading
The new regulations will allow companies from around the world to issue a broad range of digital assets, including equities, bonds, and other financial instruments, via a newly-formed entity in El Salvador called Bitfinex Securities El Salvador, S.A. De C.V. The development presents a unique opportunity for both businesses and individuals to capitalize on the benefits of issuing, investing and trading in digital assets in El Salvador’s favorable regulatory environment and to capture significant cost and efficiency advantages compared to the process of raising capital in traditional finance.
Bitfinex Securities El Salvador will operate separately from the Bitfinex group’s existing platform, Bitfinex Securities AIFC, operated by Bitfinex Securities Limited. Bitfinex Securities AIFC is a 365/24/7 digital asset platform operating within the regulatory sandbox established by the Astana International Financial Center. The platform allows previously underserved companies to access new sources of funding, while widening investor access to a host of innovative financial products, including blockchain-based equities and bonds.
