Societe Generale Becomes First French Firm to Get Bitcoin Services License
Societe Generale is the first in France to get a Bitcoin services license, opening a new era for Bitcoin in the country
Societe Generale has secured a license for Bitcoin services in France, the first company to do so. This marks a new chapter for Bitcoin in France, joining global financial firms like BlackRock and Fidelity in embracing Bitcoin.
The license, granted by France's market regulator AMF, allows Societe Generale to offer several Bitcoin services. These include trading, sales, and secure storage of Bitcoin. Although other firms like Binance are registered with the AMF, licensed banks face stricter rules.
There's been a suspicion within the Bitcoin industry of a quiet takeover by traditional finance companies. This has also been blamed for the slow response from regulators to provide clearer rules for the Bitcoin industry.
There's often confusion between Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. This confusion has harmed Bitcoin's reputation because of scams run by other crypto companies. This led to the longest drop in Bitcoin's value in its 14-year history.
Even though regulators might prefer traditional banks because of better control and compliance, these banks have often broken laws against money laundering and have poor customer data protection and KYC practices.
