ASIC has given the cryptocurrency exchange BTC Markets its first financial services license.

BTC Markets, an Australian-based cryptocurrency exchange, has become the first cryptocurrency firm in the country to obtain a financial services license from the country’s financial regulator, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC). The sister business BTCM Payments was granted a similar license by ASIC.

The holder of an Australian Financial Services (AFS) license is authorised to give advice, trade in and create a market for a financial service. It also allows the provision of custodial or depository services, among other things.

The decision to create an AFS was made in order for BTC Markets to more closely bridge the gap between traditional finance and crypto, as well as provide new products to its clients, according to BTC Markets.

That’s great news for the firm, which has been waiting more than a year for an AFS license after it was given one in August 2020.

The firm is ISO certified by the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) for information security management and has been verified by Blockchain Australia, a national organisation dedicated to blockchain technology.

Catherine Bowler, CEO of Bitcoin Markets, believes that the license will help her exchange firm prepare for potential legislation and complement its success in gaining a System and Organisation Controls (SOC) 2 accreditation.

According to CoinGecko, BTC Markets has secured a position in the Australian cryptocurrency sector, with $4.7 million in daily volume.

In February, the exchange teamed up with the stock market platform Self Wealth to provide SelfWealth customers access to trade Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), Ripple (XRP), Chainlink (LINK), and Uniswap (UNI) from June 30.

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