SEBA receives FINMA banking and securities dealer licence allowing it to close the gap between traditional and digital asset markets
- For the first time, a reputed regulatory authority – the Swiss Financial Market Authority (FINMA) – grants a banking licence to a financial services provider with main focus on digital assets
- As a licenced and regulated bank, SEBA will be able to start operations providing integrated banking and investment products and services in a secure environment
- SEBA will enable professional and institutional clients to invest, safely keep, trade and borrow against traditional and digital assets, as well as issue tokens, in one place
- This represents a significant step forward in the evolution of the digital asset market ecosystem
SEBA Crypto AG (SEBA) is proud to announce it has successfully obtained a banking and securities dealer licence* from the Swiss regulator FINMA. This represents a milestone for the entire digital asset market ecosystem, as a new secure and integrated access point to the crypto world is now available. The 2018 founded start-up, led by CEO Guido Bühler, has successfully built a licenced and supervised bank within 17 months. The official go-live is expected to take place in early October 2019. The already announced cooperation between Julius Baer and SEBA will enter into force at this time.
With the banking and securities dealer licence granted by FINMA, SEBA is able to close an important gap between traditional banks and the digital asset world. The company wants to enable professional individuals and companies as well as institutional clients to invest, safely keep, trade and borrow against traditional and digital assets, all in one place. In particular, the future offering will include custody storage, trading and liquidity management as well as asset and wealth management. For Swiss Blockchain companies SEBA will provide accounts and custody for fiat and digital assets. SEBA’s team continues its mission to redefine finance and to set new standards for safety, transparency and performance. SEBA is developing a comprehensive range of industry-leading investment products and digital asset tokenization solutions for professional and institutional investors.
SEBA is well capitalized with the CHF 100 million raised in the September 2018 funding round. Currently, SEBA’s team consists of more than 60 experts in the area of technology, information security, Blockchain and
finance.
Andreas Amschwand, Chairman of the Board of SEBA, commented: “The banking licence of the Swiss Financial Market Authority FINMA is not only a milestone for SEBA, it sets a new standard for banking in the Blockchain and digital asset economy. This moment has significance far beyond the Swiss financial industry.”
Guido Bühler, CEO of SEBA, said: “Today SEBA sets a new standard as a licenced integrated bank connecting the old and the new world. SEBA is a safe gateway between traditional banking and the digital asset market. We are proud to have built, in only 17 months, a licenced bank that fits into the digital environment of the 21st century.”
*The licence is granted on a conditional basis and will come into effect once SEBA fulfils all the secondary criteria specified by FINMA. SEBA will not be operational or onboard clients until the criteria are met.