The crypto exchange BitMEX is expanding to Switzerland, further details of which can be found in a press release. Once the incorporation process is finalized, BitMEX will seek to open an office in either Zurich or Zug in January 2022. However, the press release also explains that the company has not ruled out opening offices in both cities.
“In a first step, we are transferring all business to Switzerland for which we do not need a license from the supervisory authorities: the brokerage of cryptocurrencies”, explains CEO Alexander Höptner in an interview with the newspaper “NZZ am Sonntag”. To start with, five jobs will be created, with this number set to rise over time.
The company is also planning to apply for a license from the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA). Should it receive one, BitMEX intends to create several hundred jobs in Zurich and Zug, Höptner explains to the “NZZ am Sonntag”. According to Alexander Brunner, Crypto Valley consultant and investor, successfully securing a license would be a globally unique development.
Höptner is convinced that the new location is right for BitMEX: “Switzerland is building an impressive crypto ecosystem with all the hallmarks of an attractive destination for companies like ours that are growing quickly and innovating responsibly”, he comments in the press release. However, Höptner goes a step further in his interview with the “NZZ am Sonntag”, describing Switzerland as the world’s leading location for crypto regulation. Moreover, Zurich and Zug would also allow the company to hire the required number of specialists.
“I am extremely pleased that BitMEX is opening its European office in Switzerland”, says Heinz Tännler in the “NZZ am Sonntag” article. The President of the Swiss Blockchain Federation, the industry association for the blockchain sector in Switzerland, and Financial Director of the canton of Zug sees this as proof of Crypto Valley’s appeal and capacity to attract business, explaining this has been bolstered by the new DLT (Distributed Ledger Technology) legislation. One example of a DLT would be blockchain, which forms the basis of the cryptocurrency Bitcoin.
The headquarters of BitMEX are currently located in the Seychelles, although the company also operates location in the Americas and Asia.
Blockchain technology
Blockchain technology
The Greater Zurich Area - and with it the world-famous Crypto Valley - has developed into a world center of the blockchain industry. It is no secret that Switzerland is a formidable place to run a business. This is especially true for blockchain projects as Greater Zurich not only convinces with business-friendly, pragmatic regulatory environment and a deep-rooted sense of privacy protection but triumphs with a high concentration of peer companies, service providers and world-renowned research institutions, all working together in order to push the boundaries of the blockchain application scope.
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