TL;DR
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Kraken has secured the MiFiD license to enable it to offer derivative products in Europe.
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This comes after Kraken acquired a Cypriot investment firm.
Kraken to Offer Derivatives in Europe
Kraken, one of the leading cryptocurrency exchanges in the world, announced on Monday that it has secured a Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID) license in the EU.
In its blog post, Kraken revealed that the license was obtained through the acquisition of a Cypriot Investment Firm, which was recently approved by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC).
The license will allow the exchange to offer derivative products to advanced crypto traders throughout the EU. While commenting on this latest development, Shannon Kurtas, Kraken Co-GM of Pro & Exchange, said,
“As we continue to expand our services across the globe, our focus on the European market remains a top priority. This acquisition reflects our confidence in the EU and underscores our commitment to providing a trusted, regulated environment for advanced crypto traders and investors.”
The new feature allows advanced traders to gain exposure to a wide selection of assets using a variety of collateral currencies to back their positions. Crypto derivatives include financial products such as futures and options, which involve a contract between buyers and sellers that derives value from the price of the underlying crypto asset.
This latest development comes a few days after Kraken re-introduced its crypto-staking service to its U.S. clients two years after halting the platform and paying a $30m fine to the SEC.
