Global digital asset service provider Huobi announced that it has secured approval from the Financial Services Com￾mission to operate an exchange for cryptocurrencies and other virtual assets under its subsidiary Brtuomi Worldwide Limited.

After all conditions are satisfied, the company claimed, Huobi will become the first operator of such a platform licensed in the Virgin Islands to operate “an institutional-grade virtual assets trading platform for both professional and retail investors,” including licensed financial institutions from all over the world.

Available to trade will be spot assets including cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum; derivatives including perpetual and calendar futures; and other digital products, the company stated in a press release.

“This landmark approval makes Huobi the first licensed digital asset exchange for insti￾tutional-grade derivative products in the British Virgin Islands,” Huobi Group CFO Lily Zhang said in the release. “It is a testament to our experience, professional knowledge, and track record in the global cryptocurrency industry.”

The group

Founded in China in 2013, Huobi Group operates worldwide and has since established regulated entities in Japan, South Korea and Gibraltar, according to its website.

It claims to have tens of millions of users across five continents and 160 countries and regions.

Its subsidiary, Brtuomi, was approved in April of last year to participate in the FSC’s Regulatory Sandbox.

FSC records show that Brtuomi is the second sandbox participant approved by the agency, after Structure Financial, another global trading platform for crypto-based investing and lending.

Sandbox regime

The commission established the sandbox regime in 2020 with the goal of supporting innovation in the burgeoning fin￾tech sector and allowing
businesses to trial new products and services. Ms. Zhang explained in the press release that Huobi sees a “huge market opportunity” in cryptocurrency
derivatives, with perpetual futures — which are agreements
to buy or sell an asset with no specific delivery date — accounting for about half of global cryptocurrency trading volumes in 2021.

“With the growing importance of compliance in the industry, we will strive to meet all regulatory requirements as we expand,” she added.

“Going forward, we will work closely with the British Virgin Islands regulators to develop a suite of licensed trading products and services, and foster
the cryptocurrency industry’s growth in the territory.”

The Financial Action Task Force issued its Public Statement on Virtual Assets and Related Providers in 2019, and since then cryptocurrency-related legislation and regulations have increasingly popped up globally.

“This latest approval by the BVI regulators represents the progress that the
British Virgin Islands has made on this front, and indicates their all-around support for virtual assets service providers as a whole,” the press release stated.