Cryptocurrency trading platform Bitcoin Suisse AG has had its application for a Swiss banking license turned down.
- According to the the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA), the Zug-based financial services providers' application is ineligible for approval, the regulator announced Wednesday.
- Providing few details, FINMA cited a number of "elements that are relevant under licensing law," such as "weaknesses in money-laundering defense mechanisms," as the reason for the rejection.
- The financial watchdog has now terminated the licensing procedure after Bitcoin Suisse indicated it would not be continuing with its application at the present time.
- Bitcoin Suisse applied for a banking license in July 2019.
- The firm raised more than CHF 45 million (US$48.5 million) in Series A funding in July 2020, which it claimed pushed its valuation to CHF 302.5 million ($327 million).
See also: Switzerland’s ‘Crypto Valley’ Has Started Accepting Bitcoin, Ether for Tax Payments
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