Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase is now a fully-regulated securities firm, having been granted approval by the SEC. This makes Coinbase the first cryptocurrency exchange to gain this status.
The SEC approval allows the acquisition of Keystone Capital Corp., Venovate Marketplace Inc., and Digital Wealth LLC, which in turn enables the exchange to list security tokens. Additionally, the acquisitions give the company the necessary licenses to function as a broker-dealer and an alternative trading system, as well as a registered investment adviser.
With this development comes full oversight from the SEC, adding legitimacy to the company’s operations.
Bloomberg reports that moving forward, Coinbase is looking at being able to integrate its technology into new subsidiaries. However, no timeline has been indicated.
In an earlier announcement made on Friday, Coinbase said that it is considering adding five new digital currencies for trading: Cardano, Basic Attention Token, Stellar, Zcash, and Ox. However, it is unclear whether these cryptos will be listed. According to Bloomberg, this “doesn’t mean the firm has determined that the five coins aren’t securities…some of the assets may only be available in certain countries for legal reasons.”
