Liechtenstein crypto exchange secures regulatory approval

LCX has received approvals for eight licence categories from the Financial Market Authority of Liechtenstein

The Liechtenstein Cryptoassets Exchange (LCX) announced yesterday it had become the first cryptocurrency platform to be given approval for eight licence categories by the the Financial Market Authority (FMA) of Liechtenstein.

LCX has thus far been operating under the transitory provisions of the Blockchain Act; these new licences secured under the Token and Trusted Technology Service Provider Act (TVTG) will enable LCX to offer a wider range of services.

Headquartered in Liechtenstein, LCX also has offices in Switzerland and India. The company is a member of the World Economic Forum C4IR and has been named Blockchain Pioneer by the Blockchain Research Institute.

LCX is composed of the LCX STO Launchpad, a tokenisation platform that automates blockchain-based fundraising and investor management; the LCX Terminal, a combination of news, analytics, trading signals and real-time and historical crypto market data; and, still in the beta version, the LCX DeFi Terminal, a decentralised trading platform built on top of Uniswap.

LCX Founder and CEO Monty C.M. Metzger commented, “We have a long-standing commitment to building a fully regulated safe and reliable business while delivering a seamless user experience. Being one of the first cryptocurrency platforms to receive the Liechtenstein blockchain licenses is an important milestone. We look forward to rolling out additional compliant and innovative products and services in 2021.”

As for what those services could be, LCX now has the regulatory approval to operate as a Trusted Technology (TT) Exchange Service Provider, TT token and key depositary, TT price and identity service provider, token generator and token issuer on its own behalf or that of clients. Trusted Technology is used as an umbrella term which incorporates blockchain technology, distributed ledger technology, cryptocurrencies and digital assets.

This latest milestone comes three months after LCX announced a new partnership with Swedish RegTech company Pliance. LCX integrated Pliance’s technology and APIs in order to enhance its anti-money laundering processes, such as sanction screening, combatting the financing of terrorism and the screening of politically exposed persons.

With the introduction of TVTG at the start of this year, Liechtenstein has become one of the first countries to establish a comprehensive regulatory framework for the blockchain industry which provides definitions and specific requirements for the products, assets and services offered by blockchain companies. Even royalty is onboard – H.S.H Prince Michael of Liechtenstein said, “Blockchain is a disruptive technology which will change the financial industry.”