Kraken cryptocurrency exchange is planning to enter the European market, following in the footsteps of competitor exchange Coinbase. The exchange’s potential jurisdictions reportedly include countries like Malta, Luxembourg, and Ireland.
Jesse Powell, co-founder and CEO of Kraken, stated that his company is actively working on obtaining a European license, with many local jurisdictions being targeted for regulatory clearance this year.
Powell said in a Tuesday interview with German business news outlet The Handelsblatt that Kraken has been in talks with a number of European regulators, with Malta, Luxembourg, and Ireland being the most probable jurisdictions to license the US cryptocurrency exchange.
According to reports, Kraken’s CEO has yet to make a decision on its prospective European regulatory jurisdiction, but the firm is still on track to obtain a license by the end of 2021.
Kraken had already provided various services to consumers in European countries, and in January 2021, the Kraken mobile app was launched in Europe.
Kraken, one of the world’s largest crypto exchanges, currently operates in roughly 190 jurisdictions worldwide, according to a Kraken spokeswoman.
“We now provide access to our European clients through our FCA-registered firm in the United Kingdom, which complies with all 5AMLD criteria.
We’re looking into a variety of methods to be compliant now and in the future, including seeking to secure various European licenses “said the spokesman.
Coinbase and Kraken
Coinbase’s European arm was granted a cryptocurrency license by Germany’s Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) in June.
Coinbase’s local arm was granted the license, allowing it to lawfully offer virtual currency exchanges against legal cash. Previously, the company offered a variety of crypto services to European customers.
Kraken was founded in September 2013 and is currently the fifth-largest cryptocurrency exchange in the world, with daily trading volumes of $1.2 billion, according to data from cryptocurrency tracking site CoinGecko.
Coinbase, the company’s largest competitor, went public in mid-April with a direct listing on the Nasdaq exchange.
Kraken has been contemplating an IPO more seriously since Coinbase’s Nasdaq debut, according to Powell, with the exchange aiming for a public listing by the end of 2022.
