Swiss stock exchange obtains regulatory approval for digital asset exchange

SIX, the Swiss exchange, has received regulatory approval to launch its long-awaited digital exchange.

The SIX Digital Exchange announced on Friday that it had obtained two licenses from FINMA, the country’s market watchdog, to operate a blockchain-based stock exchange and securities depository.

SIX said it is now able to launch a regulated trading, settlement and custody infrastructure based on distributed ledger technology, also known as blockchain. It is the system best known for its use in maintaining an immutable list of all cryptocurrency transactions.

The company did not specify when it expects the new product to launch, or what assets it would allow investors to trade. However, the digital exchange could provide a regulated alternative to cryptocurrency exchanges, many of which operate outside of established rules.

Binance, the world’s leading crypto exchange, has faced several warnings and threats from authorities around the world. Meanwhile, Coinbase, which is a regulated company, recently angered the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.

SIX’s platform would also allow the Swiss stock exchange to get ahead of major exchanges like the New York Stock Exchange by offering blockchain-based securities.

Thomas Zeeb, global head of stock exchanges at SIX, previously said the company plans to offer shares in digital token form.

“Part of the basic MVP (minimum viable product) would be the listing, trading and settlement of stocks,” Zeeb told CNBC in an interview in 2019.

“The other products depend somewhat on the ongoing dialogue we have with our clients on the use cases of bonds, ETFs (exchange traded funds), non-custodial assets like works of art or real estate,” he added. “It might take a little longer depending on where the banks are located.”

The approval marks a milestone in the world of cryptocurrencies, which have been increasingly accepted by several large companies and even an entire country as their prices rise.

PayPal, Square and Mastercard are among the major financial companies to have offered support for digital currencies, while El Salvador this week became the first country to adopt bitcoin as legal tender.

SIX’s move would make it one of the first major exchanges to launch a dedicated digital asset exchange. The group first revealed its intention to launch a digital exchange in 2018.

“I can’t afford to do an Uber, it doesn’t work,” Zeeb said in 2019, referring to the ridesharing company’s notoriety for launching in territories without first asking regulators for permission. .

SIX Digital Exchange has said it will continue to invest in developing its technology over the coming months. The company added that it hopes to attract customers including banks, insurance companies and institutional investors, and aims to launch its exchange network globally.

In a statement issued on Friday, Zeeb said: “This is an important step in bringing the digitization of capital markets into the mainstream, but it is only the beginning. We will continue to work with it. our customers, regulators and other stakeholders to shape the markets of the future. “