The Astana Financial Services Authority, or AFSA, an independent financial regulator in Kazakhstan, has taken a step towards licensing cryptocurrency exchange Binance to operate in the country.
In an announcement made Monday, The AFSA said it had granted approval in principle for Binance to operate as a digital asset trading facility and provide custody services at the Astana International Financial Center, a financial hub in the capital of Nur-Sultan.. In a blog post on Monday, Binance said that he had to complete the approval application process, which the cryptocurrency exchange hoped to do “in due course.”
According to the CEO of AFSA, Nurkhat Kushimov, the move to grant Binance a license to operate in Kazakhstan could lead to the development of a “vibrant local and regional digital asset industry ecosystem.” Binance founder and CEO Changpeng Zhao added that the exchange aims for a “compliance-first” approach, providing products and services “in a safe and well-regulated environment” globally.
#Binance obtains In-Principle Approval from the Astana Financial Services Authority (AFSA) in Kazakhstan https://t.co/w5ERAagSCN
— CZ Binance (@cz_binance) August 15, 2022
Binance Gets Approval in Principle from the Astana Financial Services Authority (AFSA) in Kazakhstan
In May, CZ met with the President of Kazakhstan, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, and signed a memorandum of understanding aimed at boosting the “development of the virtual asset market” in the country. Under the proposed framework, Binance would assist Kazakhstan in drawing up legislative guidelines and regulatory policies for cryptocurrencies.
Regulators in many countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Japan, and Thailand, cracked down on Binance operations in their respective jurisdictions in 2021, issuing warnings to potential investors and, in some cases, claiming that the exchange was conducting business without proper license. However, in 2022, Binance obtained regulatory approval to operate in France, Bahrain, Spain, and Dubai.
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