Bitfrost secures VASP registration in Gibraltar

Bitfrost, a Gibraltar-based fintech client of Hassans’ Partner Anthony Provasoli, that supports institutions involved in the purchase and sale of virtual assets has today announced its successful registration with the Gibraltar Financial Services Commission (‘GFSC’) as a Virtual Assets Service Provider (‘VASP’).

The activity Bitfrost has been registered for is the exchanging, arranging or making of arrangements with a view to the exchange of (i) virtual assets for fiat money; (ii) fiat money for virtual assets; or (iii) one virtual asset for another.

Having completed the first part of its phased plan to become a fully regulated Distributed Ledger Technology (‘DLT’) Financial Services Provider, Bitfrost is delighted to celebrate the achievement of this first milestone. It is intended that Bitfrost will, in due course, seek to secure a full Gibraltar DLT licence under the principles-based framework of regulations. Recently updated to include a new Tenth Principle, The Gibraltar DLT Regulations are considered by many as one of the more robust, reputable and appropriate regulatory frameworks available in the space. The availability of the VASP registration process is a further feather in the cap of Gibraltar’s offering in this regard, adding to the series of options entrepreneurs and established players alike can leverage to their advantage.

It is Bitfrost’s intention to register itself and/or seek regulatory approval (as the case may be) in multiple jurisdictions to maximise its compliance efforts and give comfort to its clients and partners that it is always aiming to operate at the highest international standards.

Gibraltar is an important first step in this context. Companies seeking the GFSC’s approval under Gibraltar’s registration regime must demonstrate the fitness and propriety of the key individuals behind the business and also that they are complying with Gibraltar’s AML legislation. This in turn, is legislation which complied with international standards on Anti Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism.”

Eva Lorenzo, recently appointed as Head of Compliance at Bitfrost, said,

“Compliance with these requirements shows our constant desire to improve and meet the high standards enforced by the GFSC. Robust compliance is very important to our clients and our registration as a VASP in Gibraltar shows our compliance program is ready to provide additional protection to our customers. We hope that this will provide all our clients with greater comfort when using our services.”

Anton Chashchin, Managing Partner of Bitfrost, said,

“Gibraltar follows the trends of the global financial market, balancing regulation with the flexibility to innovate. This approach is consistent with Bitfrost’s. In addition, we strive to be able to provide customers with the widest range of financial services available, and registering as a VASP in Gibraltar, followed by hopefully obtaining authorisation to operate as a fully regulated DLT or Virtual Asset Service Provider in the future sets us on our way to be able to do just that. We are very thankful to the GFSC for their helpful approach and also to the team at Hassans International Law Firm Limited for their expert guidance and support throughout.”

Anthony Provasoli, team lead on the project for Hassans, said:

“I am delighted that we have now completed the process of obtaining VASP registration for Bitfrost. It has been a great project to work on, with full engagement from Bitfrost, alongside its commitment to offer their services in accordance with best practice. I have to thank my team at Hassans, Hannah Lopez and Jerome Compson, for all their work on the application. I am thrilled that the DLT offering in Gibraltar continues to make the right noises and attract the right players to our market. The balance of regulation, innovation and customer protection is a balance which we believe will come to be the cornerstone of regulation in this space, in a global context. I have congratulated the team at Bitfrost and look forward to working with them on the next stage of their plans.”

*Bitfrost may restrict or deny its services to certain countries depending on sanctions, regulatory restrictions and prohibitions.