Coinbase announced today that it is rolling out British pound support for its UK-based customers enabling them to now directly buy and sell cryptocurrencies.
Faster Same Day Deposits and Withdrawals
This is a significant move from the San Francisco-based crypto exchange. Prior to this, UK customers had to convert fiat funds into euros first and then into pound sterling. Done through an international bank transfer, the process could take days.
Now, however, Coinbase has said that customers will be able to transfer pound sterling, using it directly to buy and sell crypto assets. The digital currencies currently available on the platform are Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, and Litecoin.
In June, the exchange announced its support for Ethereum Classic. It has also received the okay to list coins labeled as securities by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
According to today’s announcement, the new roll-out will be available to customers of Coinbase, Coinbase Pro, and Coinbase Prime.
Zeeshan Feroz, CEO of Coinbase UK, said:
We’ve worked hard over the last few months to add GBP support for Coinbase customers across several of our product offerings in the UK.
Now, UK customers can conduct faster payments with same day deposits and withdrawals.
Feroz added:
Faster payments will benefit all UK customers, enabling almost immediate transfers. […] This is essential for Coinbase Pro and Coinbase Prime customers in particular who will now be able to transfer funds quickly.
According to Feroz, Coinbase, Coinbase Pro, and Coinbase Prime GBP support are now live for some of their existing customers. The company plans to continue rolling this out to all UK customers in the coming weeks. He added that the platform has taken steps to become a “trusted and compliant brand” in the industry. This includes obtaining an e-money license from the UK’s financial watchdog, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
Last month, the platform revealed that it was giving its customers in the EU and Australia a new way of using their cryptocurrency: through e-gift cards.
Coinbase Contemplating Other Tokens
In a recent blog post, the crypto exchange revealed that it was thinking about the addition of other altcoins. These include Cardano (ADA), Basic Attention Token (BAT), Stellar Lumens (XLM), Zcash (ZEC), and 0x (ZRX).
At the moment they are “exploring” the possibility, but such a move would surely help bring these tokens into the mainstream further. Additionally, it would boost Coinbase’s position as the go-to platform to expand on a crypto portfolio.
What do you think of Coinbase’s move to support GBP? Let us know in the comments below.
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