Huobi cryptocurrency exchange has gained an investment license to enter the British Virgin Islands through its subsidiary Brtuomi Worldwide as part of its ongoing global expansion plan.
Huobi formally declared on Friday that it had obtained an investing company license from the British Virgin Islands Financial Services Commission (FSC). With this authorization, Huobi is now able to run a virtual asset exchange through its subsidiary, Brtuomi Worldwide Limited (BWL).
BWL intends to provide a variety of crypto trading services, including spot trading for cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH), as well as trading in derivatives, according to the release.
The business touts itself as the first operator of a digital asset trading platform in the British Virgin Islands with a license to manage a cryptocurrency trading platform of institutional caliber for both professional and retail investors.
According to Huobi Group Chief Financial Officer Lily Zhang, “We anticipate that this license will have significant significance for institutional investors, as it will make us the first exchange to supply compliant crypto derivative products and trading services in the territory.”
“Many institutional investors in the crypto industry operate out of the British Virgin Islands, so we think there’s a large market opportunity there.”
Zhang mentioned that Huobi is also authorized to use distributed ledger technology in Gibraltar. According to the chief finance officer, Huobi Group does not have a set schedule for when services will be extended to the rest of the United Kingdom.
BWL joined the FSC’s financial innovation sandbox in addition to being a legally recognized entity in the British Virgin Islands, joining organizations like Alameda Trust and Three Arrows Capital.
BWL is the second sandbox participant authorized by the FSC, after Structure Financial, a global trading platform that facilitates lending and investing in cryptocurrencies, according to official FSC records. In 2020, the regulator created the sandbox with the goal of fostering innovation in the expanding fintech industry and enabling businesses to test out new goods and services.
In the future, Zhang said, “we will work closely with the British Virgin Islands regulators to establish a suite of regulated trading products and services and support the cryptocurrency industry’s growth in the jurisdiction.”
One of the main international locations for businesses involved with cryptocurrencies is the British Virgin Islands. The British Virgin Islands have surpassed the United States as the second most popular destination for crypto hedge funds, according to statistics from PwC’s fourth annual global crypto hedge fund report in 2022.
A British Virgin Islands court ruled in June that Singapore-based venture capital firm Three Arrows Capital must be dissolved. According to verified information, the company is listed as a professional fund with the FSC.
