Japan’s bitFlyer Exchange Obtains a BitLicense to Expand Across the US

LBN bitFlyer BitLicense

Most cryptocurrency enthusiasts will know the name bitFlyer. This Japanese exchange has quickly made a name for itself in recent months. Moreover, the company also has a crowdfunding platform associated with Bitcoin. Further expanding the reach of bitFlyer is one of the top priorities right now. To do so, they are now setting up shop in the United States. This move is made possible thanks to receiving an official BitLicense. More competition in New York can only be considered to be a good thing, to say the least.

A lot of exchanges no longer serve the New York region This is mainly thanks to the BitLicense requirement, introduced by Benjamin Lawsky a few years ago. Very few companies have such a license at this point in time, though. That makes it all the more surprising to see bitFlyer obtain one of these licenses out of the blue. With this license, the Japanese exchange can offer its services across several dozen US states. A positive development for cryptocurrency in general, that much is evident.

bitFlyer Expands to the United States

Up until now, bitFlyer mainly kept its business limited to Japan. This country has quickly become a major Bitcoin hub, to say the least. Not only is there a good amount of trading volume in Japan, but a lot of retailers accept cryptocurrency payments as well. That makes the country one of the very few in the world to make a major positive impact. Moreover, the exchange supports a few different currencies, including Bitcoin Cash and Ethereum. With the company now expanding to the US, an interesting step is taken.

It will be interesting to see the Japanese exchange with other established companies in the US. Coinbase, GDAX, Gemini, and Bittrex are some of the companies dominating that market right now. At the same time, there will be no competition with Bitfinex, as they left the US market a few weeks ago. Big changes are taking place in the world of cryptocurrency, that much is evident right now. With the BitLicense in their pocket, things are looking pretty good for bitFlyer at this stage.

Moreover, the company has seen spectacular growth in its domestic market this year. The company represents 30% of all nationwide Bitcoin trading volume. It is evident there is still a lot of room left for future growth in Japan. For the US-oriented plans, customers can only buy Bitcoin at first. Other currencies will be added over time. It is unclear when this will happen exactly, though. An interesting future lies ahead for this Japanese firm. US cryptocurrency enthusiasts will certainly appreciate this new competitor as well.

Header image courtesy of Shutterstock

Exit mobile version