Bitfinex, one of the oldest cryptocurrency exchanges, has announced the launch of a securities trading platform in El Salvador, the first country to recognize bitcoin (BTC) as legal tender.
According to a press release seen by CryptoPotato, Bitfinex Securities El Salvador will be the Central American country’s first registered and licensed digital assets service provider.
Bitfinex Securities Platform Launches in El Salvador
Bitfinex Securities El Salvador is currently accepting customer applications and has a pipeline of issuances awaiting launch.
The new platform launch follows the greenlighting of several Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) two weeks ago. The move rides on the expectation that there will be substantial demand for similar financial instruments that give investors exposure to digital assets.
Around this time last year, El Salvador approved a digital asset regulatory framework, paving the way for fully operational and regulated Bitcoin markets. Bitfinex believes developing a tokenized securities industry in the country represents a leap for financial innovation in Latin America.
Expressing excitement for the latest feat, Paolo Ardoino, Chief Technology Officer of Bitfinex, said: “We are delighted to be able to announce the launch of Bitfinex Securities in El Salvador. This is not only an important market for Bitfinex given its adoption of Bitcoin as legal tender and the fostering of a Bitcoin -based economy, but it also gives El Salvador the opportunity to attract global investment flows, as issuers put out competitively priced securities offerings.”
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Bitfinex further classified El Salvador’s historic adoption of BTC as legal tender in 2021 as a visionary step towards a Bitcoin-centric economy. The decision would ease the launch of tokenized assets set to come into the market in the first half of the year.
“The new Digital Assets Securities Law, passed last year, carved out digital assets regulation from the traditional financial regulator and created the national commission of digital assets, that oversees the supervision and regulation of the ecosystem,” stated Juan Carlos Reyes, President of the National Commission of Digital Assets in El Salvador.
Meanwhile, users who seek access to all Bitfinex Securities issuances must be verified with the platform’s Kazakhstan arm and the new firm in El Salvador.
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