cryptovibes.com
Kraken, a United States crypto exchange, has confirmed ready plans to expand its crypto services beyond the US market jurisdictions. The crypto exchange is now seeking an operating license within the European region as it prepares to enter the global markets before December 2021.
In an August 25 interview with a German news outlet Handelsblatt, Jesse Powell, CEO of Kraken, confirmed that the exchange is in the process of getting a license to operate legally on the European continent.
In that context, Powell mentioned that he expects the expansion plans to be ready before the end of December 2021. The top executive has not revealed the status of negotiations. However, he confirmed that Kraken is already conducting close consultations with Malta, Luxembourg, and Ireland.
The operating license that Kraken is seeking is vital for its crypto services expansion in the global markets. Initially, Kraken had successfully acquired license approval from the United Kingdom regulatory authorities. But after Brexit, the license lost its strength since it could only apply within the UK jurisdiction.
Kraken’s strategic move to trade beyond United States territories would attract healthy competition for its North-American rival, Coinbase, the exchange that recently went public and is now licensed to operate even in Germany.
Comparably, Kraken has confirmed that it has no imminent plans to establish crypto services within Germany. But, Powell revealed that Kraken had previously discussed with Germany’s regulator, BaFin, about possible crypto advancement. The crypto exchange insisted that Germany’s regulations were too complex, restrictive, and expensive to be considered attractive by his company.
Nevertheless, Kraken has a notable advantage over Coinbase, with the Wyoming banking Board voting for Kraken’s application for a Special Purpose Depository Institution (SPDI) charter in September 2021.
An NFT Marketplace, Bank, And DeFi Booster
Remarkably, the voting process recognized Kraken as the first exchange with SPDI bank status in Wyoming and the state’s first chartered (de Novo) bank since 2006. Before summarizing his interview, Powell revealed that Kraken is actively working on other strategies to further spread its influence within the crypto ecosystem.
In that episode, the top Kraken executive confirmed that the exchange is also looking to go public soon to follow the footprints of Coinbase. Powell also explained that the firm is dealing with all the complex regulatory paperwork, but asserted that the latest Coinbase direct listing prepared the entry of crypto into the global markets:
“We have to work through a huge checklist with 1000 tasks. For us, it’s good that Coinbase was the first to go public.”
Furthermore, Kraken is also aiming to enter the nonfungible tokens (NFTs) and Decentralized Finance (DeFi) segment in the future. Powell says that its users would be allowed to access the governance rights to DeFi tokens. Kraken is also looking to offer exposure to the games scene partnering with the likes of Axie Infinity and Crypto Punks.
“We would like to have a marketplace through which people can trade NFTs. I believe we will see a number of applications for NFTs in the coming years.”