In the wake of tightening crypto regulations in the European Union, fintech firm zondacrypto has secured an upgraded Estonian operating licence as one of 22 entities confirmed to be compliant with the updated regulatory regime and the largest crypto exchange to do so. This also makes zondacrypto the largest cryptocurrency exchange based in the European Union that is officially prepared for MiCA, as it has fulfilled strict Estonian requirements.
Two years ago, Estonia introduced stricter licensing requirements in order to impose a more stringent regulatory framework on cryptocurrency companies. On July 12, the Estonian Financial Intelligence Unit decided to grant zondacrypto an upgraded operating licence in recognition of the exchange’s efforts to comply with the strictest cryptocurrency regulations in the EU, and on July 25, the licence was officially acknowledged in the announcement on the FIU’s website.
Before reaching this decision, the Financial Intelligence Unit conducted a comprehensive audit to determine the quality of zondacrypto’s operations and compliance with strict Estonian regulatory standards. The process included a detailed assessment of the platform’s service and back office, as well as advice on how to improve certain operational areas. In the end, the auditors determined that zondacrypto met the requirements set by the Estonian regulator.
Przemyslaw Kral, CEO of zondacrypto. Source: zondacrypto
“By obtaining the upgraded Estonian licence from the FIU, we have become the European champion of regulatory compliance among cryptocurrency exchanges. Not only are we now ready to implement MiCA, but we are also compliant with even more stringent Estonian regulations. For our users, this means that they can enjoy the highest-possible level of security when trading on zondacrypto, and they can rest assured that our services meet all the legal requirements necessary to operate in the market,” says Przemyslaw Kral, CEO of zondacrypto.
Source: zondacrypto
It’s important to note how difficult it is to receive a crypto exchange licence in Estonia. Just two years ago, 1,447 entities had an Estonian operating licence, while as of July 27, the number of active licences has fallen down to just 78, due to tightening of regulatory standards. Only 22 of those companies, including zondacrypto, were confirmed by the Financial Intelligence Unit to be compliant with new regulations.
This makes zondacrypto’s achievement even more significant, as it becomes one of 22 crypto entities fully compliant with the updated Estonian regulations and the largest exchange that has the upgraded permission to operate in the country.
About zondacrypto
Zondacrypto is a centralized cryptocurrency exchange founded in 2014 in Poland, and is currently the largest cryptocurrency platform in Central and Eastern Europe. It is licensed in Estonia, Italy, Lithuania, Slovakia and Canada. Users of the platform can transact in more than 65 cryptocurrencies in pairs with traditional currencies (EUR, GBP and PLN), stablecoins (USDT and USDC), and BTC and ETH. The platform has over one million users.