By securing its Multilateral Trading Facility (MTF) license from Slovenia’s Securities Market Agency, Bitstamp has continued to improve its EU regulatory positioning. This license allows Bitstamp to add new products like crypto derivatives that involve perpetual swaps—essentially, traders can speculate on cryptocurrency prices without an expiration date.
With this, it becomes apparent that Bitstamp fits into the stream of other regulated EU trading facilities and increases demand from its institutional and retail investors alike.
Expands Offerings with New MTF License
With the MTF license, Bitstamp can realize its potential to provide complex financial products in a regulated EU environment. Bitstamp now offers stocks, commodities, bonds, and structured financial products in addition to cryptocurrency, allowing it to extend its authorization.
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They meet the market demands for assets beyond digital and traditional assets to become a competitive option for investors who need to trade digital and traditional assets.
Bitstamp’s move towards regulatory-compliant crypto derivatives is a response to the rising interest of institutional clients in diversified, compliant financial products.
Bitstamp follows this by offering perpetual swaps and similar products—something established exchanges do, like Amsterdam-based D2X, which, as with Bitstamp, does so under similar regulatory frameworks.
This expansion suggests crypto offerings are becoming more sophisticated as traditional financial practices and the cryptocurrency market come together under EU rule.
Gains EU Edge with Robinhood Acquisition
U.S.-based fintech Robinhood bought Bitstamp for $200 to continue its presence in the European and Asian regions. Bitstamp hopes that Robinhood’s acquisition will conclude soon, in early 2025, as it looks to expand the global market and crypto capabilities.
The buyout is part of Robinhood’s strategy to increase its cryptocurrency portfolio and presence in Europe and Asia. Robinhood’s struggles with the SEC are piling up, and most notably, the company still has challenges ahead for its endeavors in crypto.
Earlier this year, the SEC sent Robinhood a Wells notice, which, according to the regulations, could have triggered complaints regarding securities violations in Robinhood’s crypto business.
In this instance, the regulatory pressure presents the contrasting regulatory landscapes for the U.S. and EU. Also, the differences in MTF licenses make Bitstamp give them a broader compliance advantage.
Bitstamp and Stripe Ease Crypto Purchases in Europe
A recent Bitstamp partnership with payment provider Stripe has crypto purchases in mind, focusing on helping European customers. Integration partners can use a fiat-to-crypto onramp to enable their users to buy crypto such as Bitcoin and Ether (Ether) directly inside the application.
Such an approach does not require users to hold prior crypto, addressing the so-called ‘cold start problem’ and providing more seamless crypto access to new users. Bitstamp uses Stripe’s infrastructure to further add security to its fiat-to-crypto conversion process, which revolves around the customer’s demand to use crypto simply.
This partnership aligns with Bitstamp’s aim to stake its claim on the European market as a top crypto platform for the smooth trading of digital currencies. This also highlights the maturing crypto industry’s acclamation of entry subject matter as Bitstamp continues demonstrating how it strives to improve the user experience.
