On Friday, the Swiss financial regulator (FINMA) gave SIX Digital Exchange (SDX) the green light to run a stock exchange. And a central securities depository for crypto assets.
These licenses grant SDX the power to provide high-quality Swiss standards regulations and oversight. The firm promised investors to offer a secure digital ecosystem for all cryptocurrency transactions in the country.
“This is an important milestone in providing institutional investors with a safe and robust [crypto] infrastructure”, Thomas Zeeb, the global head of SIX Digital Exchange, said.
The FINMA regulatory approval means that SDX can now launch custody infrastructure, settlement, and regulated trading. All this will be based on blockchain technology, which creates an irreversible list of all crypto transactions within the system.
Landmark move for SDX
The regulatory approval is a landmark win for the cryptocurrency world, which is still reveling in El Salvador’s legal adoption of Bitcoin as a legal tender on Tuesday.
The growing acceptance of cryptocurrency from large financial companies — such as PayPal, Square, and MasterCard — is sweet music to the ears of the digital market, too.
SDX Exchange is among the first major bourses in the country to exclusively dedicate to cryptocurrency assets. This landmark move was long-awaited.
In 2018, SDX set out to build a fully integrated Swiss digital exchange. They’ve now achieved both the dream and the milestone.
In the coming months, SDX looks to enhance its technological systems to better provide services to its customers. And to create a global liquidity network for digital assets by engaging stakeholders and other financial players.
The firm aims to launch its exchange network worldwide
The firm hopes to court major investors to the platform, including institutional investors, insurance firms, and banks. In addition, SDX hopes to launch its digital exchange across the world.
So far, FINMA’s green light cements SDX’s financial principles. It won’t come as a surprise if the firm pulls ahead of New York Stock Exchange in providing blockchain securities.
Once live, SDX plans to offer stocks and bonds as digital tokens. Currently, it stays tight-lipped on when it will launch the new products.
That said, SDX aims to provide regulated alternatives to crypto that operate outside the realms of established rules. Unfortunately, the Swiss exchange won’t support Bitcoin and a few other cryptocurrencies for now.
Recently, Binance — the world’s top crypto exchange — came under intense regulatory scrutiny as authorities around the globe seek to crack down on the crypto industry.
Contributors
