One Swiss startup that was launched by several former UBS bankers is in the latest crypto news – and its raise of 100 million Swiss francs (about $104 million USD) in an attempt to establish a regulated cryptocurrency bank.
The startup is called SEBA Crypto AG (SEBA) and is based in the Swiss Crypto Valley near Zug. According to an official announcement on Thursday, the startup said that it had secured the funds from domestic and foreign institutional and private investors including BlackRiver Asset Management and Summer Capital.
With this investment, SEBA also said that it will develop and offer traditional banking services to many cryptocurrency-based companies and also provide cryptocurrency trading, asset management, and custodial services for institutions interested in moving to the nascent space.
The company is now applying for a banking and securities dealer license from the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) before it can roll out the planned crypto bank services.
As a report from Reuters noted, the FINMA confirmed that the licensing process is underway. If the government grants it, SEBA will open both online and physical banks for crypto and traditional financial services.
A former global head of foreign exchange and money market at UBS named Andreas Amschwand is the head of SEBA. As he stated following the news:
“In Switzerland, we have the commitment from various authorities to establish a comprehensive regulatory environment for the development of blockchain technology and the sustainable, stable growth of crypto assets. This makes Switzerland the ideal place to launch a new financial services paradigm.”
However, SEBA is not the only crypto startup that aims to disrupt the banking industry and launch crypto banking services. The Goldman Sachs-backed crypto wallet and investment platform Circle is also seeking to register as a licensed bank in the US in order to offer crypto brokerage and trading services in all 50 states.
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