Forge, the crypto subsidiary of European banking giant Societe Generale, has now become the first licensed digital asset service provider (DASP) in France.
According to a report by Bloomberg, France’s stock market regulator, Autorité des Marches Financiers (AMF), approved the first DASP license for SG Forge on Tuesday, July 18, expanding the reach of the Societe Generale Bank in the digital asset space.
Ordinarily, this may sound puzzling as there are a good number of digital assets service providers currently operating in France, such as Binance, Bistamp, Voyager, etc. However, the AMF notes that these businesses are only registered with its agency and do not possess a DASP license.
In France, DASP registration is mandatory for all companies – local or foreign – that intend to provide services such as digital asset custody, crypto exchange services, etc.
Meanwhile, the DASP license is exclusive to crypto asset service providers established in France. These companies are held to higher standards of compliance “in terms of organization, financial resources, and business conduct.”
What Does A DASP License Mean For Societe Generale?
Commenting on this recent feat, Forge CEO Jean-Marc Stenger noted that the license will allow the crypto company to scale its services with institutional clients in the country.
He said:
The license will enable Forge to meet demand from institutional clients for digital assets.
According to the AMF website, the DASP license grants Forge the rights to act as a digital asset custodian as well as to transact digital assets for France’s legal tender. In addition, Forge is authorized to trade digital assets and execute transaction orders on behalf of third parties.
Finally, the acquisition of a DASP license by a subsidiary of Societe Generale points to the increasing engagement of traditional finance firms with the crypto space.
As expected, the emergence of this news has driven much excitement across the crypto community, which is partly due to Societé Generale’s status as the third-largest bank in France.
Popular crypto analyst, Michaël van der Poppe, was one of the many happy crypto enthusiasts. In a tweet, he hinted that traditional finance institutions will be the driving force behind “the next big bull market.”
BREAKING:
Societe Generale is officially approved to offer #Bitcoin custody & trading to clients.
Institutions are on the horizon. The next big bull market is here.
Get your bags and wait.
— Michaël van de Poppe (@CryptoMichNL) July 19, 2023
Preparations Remain Underway For EU’s MiCA Regulations
In other news, there are ongoing preparations in anticipation of the European Union Market in Crypto Asset Regulation, which will be effective in 2024.
Just last week, the European Banking Authority (EBA) rolled out a set of guidelines for stablecoin operators, encouraging these firms to make necessary arrangements to avoid any form of business disruption upon the enforcement of the new regime.
In addition, the European Securities and Market Authorities (ESMA) has released the first version of its consultation package, calling for input from various crypto key players on how best to implement the MiCA regulations.
It is also worth stating that the Societe Generale’s latest DASP approval counts as a form of preparation for the MiCA regime, as all crypto assets service providers that intend to operate under the new regulatory framework are mandated to obtain a license from an EU member state.
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