Estonia’s Financial Intelligence Unit issued its first license for a crypto service provider in accordance with the new regulatory framework. It entered into effect March 1.
The regulator explained that Striga Technology OU was the first entrepreneur to be authorized to offer a virtual currency service after the amendments to the Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing Prevention Act.
This week, the Estonian Financial Intelligence Unit announced that Striga Technology OU was licensed by it to provide crypto services. Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) is an independent government agency that falls under the Ministry of Finance. Its mission is to stop money laundering and terrorist financing in Estonia.
This is the first crypto licence under the new crypto regulation framework
According to the Estonian FIU, the newly licensed company is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Lastbit Inc., an American technology company.
Striga Technology OU is Striga Technology’s first entrepreneur to be authorized for the first virtual currency service. This is since amendments to the Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing Prevention Act came into effect on 15 March 2022.
According to the Estonian FIU, 381 licenses were issued to crypto service providers under the new framework. The regulator reported that 135 companies had submitted applications for licenses under the new regulation in June. In the meantime, 94 of the crypto service providers have resigned their authorizations, and 18 licenses were revoked in this year.
According to the financial regulator, there are 177 valid licenses available for virtual asset service providers that were previously issued by FIU.
Matis Maeker is the Estonian Financial Intelligence Unit’s head.
Virtual asset service providers are more than three quarters likely to seek out countries with less quality supervision and regulations that do not meet international standards.
In January, Keit Pentus – Rosimannus, Estonia’s Finance Minister, met with Janet Yellen, U.S. Treasury Secretary. They discussed how the two countries could exchange information in order to identify best practices for crypto regulation.
