Today, CEO at Coinbase UK Zeeshan Feroz informed users of the bitcoin and cryptocurrency exchange that the company has now secured an e-money license from the United Kingdom’s financial regulators. Additionally, they are the first bitcoin exchange to support the UK’s Faster Payments Scheme, a 24/7 real-time payment system which would allow near-instant transfers from Coinbase to UK bank accounts.
The e-money license requires all Coinbase e-money operations to meet strict rules enforced by the FCA and the Payment Services Directive. For exchange customers, this will mean a better experience through possible new partnerships along with a seamless and easier to use account dashboard.
All e-money operations have safeguards and operational standards at equivalence with other regulated financial institutions. An example is the segregation of client funds, where all customer fiat balances will be separated from Coinbase company funds and kept in separate bank accounts.
Mr. Feroz said, “our e-money license will extend beyond the UK to 23 countries within the EU. We believe that this is an important step towards our commitment to making cryptocurrency accessible to everyone.”
Regarding the UK Faster Payments Scheme, banks are replacing EU-based SEPA accounts for UK customers, and the Faster Payments Scheme will benefit users by offering much faster bank transfers. Coinbase UK will start with a pilot for its small number of institutional users. During the next month, they said it will be implemented for all UK customers.