Binance has been granted permission to operate in Sweden, according to an announcement released by the cryptocurrency exchange on January 11.
Binance Swedish Registries
Today’s announcement indicates that the Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority (FSA) has registered Binance Nordics AB as a financial institution.
This development means Swedish users can fully utilize common Binance features, including crypto trading and Euro deposits and withdrawals.
Swedish users will also have access to Binance Pay and Binance’s Visa Card, which allow users to spend crypto on their accounts at various merchants.
Additionally, Swedish users will have access to Binance’s various staking, mining, and custody features. Meanwhile, new projects will be able to use the company’s starter programs – Launchpad and Launchpool.
Sweden is the seventh EU state Binance has expanded into. It notably introduced its services in France in May 2022 and also held licenses in Italy, Lithuania, Spain, Cyprus and Poland. The company now holds licenses in fifteen jurisdictions (or fourteen, excluding Sweden) and serves users in more than 140 countries.
Binance did not specify when its Swedish users will see the effects of the registration. However, one executive said that “successful migration and launch of local operations » will come next. The company will also hire local employees in Sweden.
Binance plans to hire sprees
News of Binance’s northern expansion comes with reports that the company intends to grow its team in an upcoming round of hiring.
CNBC reported today that Binance plans to increase its workforce by 15% to 30% in 2023, growing its workforce from 3,000 to around 8,000. CEO Changpeng Zhao announced the plan at a conference in Switzerland. Zhao further explained that Binance hopes to grow in preparation for the next bull market.
On the other hand, some competing exchanges are making cuts due to the tough cryptocurrency market. Over the past week, Huobi announced that it would lay off around 20% of its staff, while Coinbase announced that it would lay off 950 workers.
Binance is currently the largest exchange by trading volume, as it processed $7 billion worth of crypto trades in the last 24 hours. Its dominance probably allows it to hire aggressively even if its competitors are cautious.
