OKEx will move to Malta. The world’s second largest Exchange in terms of trading volume announced its decision a few hours ago to move to the European Island of Malta. Similarly, Asian exchange Binance also has taken the same initiative a few days ago.
According to an official announcement posted on its website the OKEx board had held a series of previous meetings with government representatives from the island seeking to learn the country’s views concerning the promotion of cryptocurrency and the blockchain industry in general. The conversations were successful, encouraging the team to work hand in hand with the country.
Source Image: okex.com
Silvio Schembri (middle) meets with OKEx Chief Risk Officer Tim Byun (right) and Vice President Jason Lau (left) Source: OKEx
OkEx Will Move to Malta
For Chris Lee, CEO of OKEx, setting up the company at “Blockchain Island” is not only a matter of favorable legislation but also of security:
“We look forward to working with the Malta government as it is forward thinking and shares many of our same values: the most important of which are protection of traders and the general public, compliance with Anti Money Laundering and Know Your Customer standards, and recognition of the innovation and importance of continued development in the Blockchain ecosystem.”
In a recently published consultation document entitled “Malta: A Leader in DLT Regulation,” the island authorities propose as a first initiative the formulation of 3 legislative developments:
“3.1 Proposed legislative developments This consultation document relates to a legislative approach involving the promulgation into law of three proposed pieces of legislation namely, the MDIA Bill, the TAS Bill and the VC Bill.
The MDIA Bill will provide for the establishment of an Authority to be known as the Malta Digital Innovation Authority.
The TAS Bill will set out the regime for the registration of Technology Service Providers and the certification of Technology Arrangements.
The VC Bill will set out the framework for ICOs and the regulatory regime on to the provision of certain services in relation to VCs.
The intermediaries subject to the VC Bill include brokers, exchanges, wallet providers, asset managers, investment advisors and market makers dealing in VCs.”
The productive efforts of Malta’s Parliament Secretary Silvio Schembri, first attracted the attention of “CZ,” CEO of Binance who was looking for an alternative to his popular exchange after receiving a series of warnings in Asia as a result of his operations.
There are also rumors that once the move is complete, Binance is expected to be able to open Crypto-Fiat currency pairs, which it had not been able to work with before.
Similarly, in a tweet published in his official account, CZ invited other entrepreneurs to try their hand at business in this country. A recommendation that has been followed by OKEx, who, faced with similar business and problems, has decided to work in Malta.
It is expected that with the Top 2 crypto exchanges settled in the country, Malta will have a more dynamic economy. However, the Island also hopes to contribute to the crypto sphere by providing arguments for improving critical issues such as legislation, security and future directions.