Bitstamp
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| Type | Bitcoin exchange |
|---|---|
| Location | Luxembourg, Luxembourg;Slovenia |
| Key people | Nejc Kodrič (CEO and co-founder) |
| Currency | Bitcoin |
| Website | www |
Bitstamp is a bitcoin exchange based in Luxembourg. As of 2016[update] it was the world's second largest by volume. It allows trading between USD currency and bitcoin . It allows USD, EUR, bitcoin or deposits and withdrawals.
The company was founded as a European-focused alternative to then-dominant bitcoin exchange Mt. Gox. While the company trades in US dollars, it allows money to be deposited through the European Union's Single Euro Payments Area, a convenient way of transferring money between European bank accounts.
Bitstamp offers an API to allow clients to use custom software to access and control their accounts.
The company is headed by CEO Nejc Kodrič, a widely known member of the bitcoin community, who co-founded the company in August 2011 with Damijan Merlak in his native Slovenia, but later moved its registration to the UK in April 2013, then to Luxembourg in 2016. Bitstamp outsourced certain operations to the UK due to the lack of adequate financial and legal services in Slovenia.
When incorporating in the United Kingdom, the company approached the UK's Financial Conduct Authority for guidance, but was told that bitcoin was not classed as a currency, so the exchange was not subject to regulation. Bitstamp says that it instead regulates itself, following a set of best practices to authenticate customers and deter money laundering. In September 2013, the company began requiring account holders to verify their identity with copies of their passports and official records of their home address. In April 2016, the Luxembourgish government granted a license to Bitstamp to be fully regulated in the EU as a payment institution, allowing it to do business in all 28 EU member states.
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