Bitfinex Securities Initiates Operations in El Salvador
Bitfinex Securities, the tokenized securities trading platform from the Bitfinex exchange, is officially launching its operations in El Salvador. This move comes months after the platform received a digital asset service provider license under El Salvador’s Digital Assets Issuance Law in April 2023. The launch follows El Salvador’s implementation of key regulations and infrastructure surrounding the digital asset regime. Bitfinex Securities is set to offer various products, including equity and bond-like issuances, with plans to announce these in the coming months. Jesse Knutson, head of operations at Bitfinex Securities, anticipates significant demand for regulated digital investment services, particularly in the wake of the U.S. launching its first spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
Anticipating Growth and Diverse Offerings
The platform expects increased interest in tokenized securities and real-world assets, in line with the growing institutional interest in Bitcoin and Bitcoin-based securities. Knutson highlights that Bitfinex Securities has a mix of domestic and international issuers in its pipeline, indicating a broad scope of offerings for its clients. The launch in El Salvador is also a strategic move for Bitfinex Securities to expand its presence in Central and South America. The platform is already available to institutional and individual investors worldwide, except in sanctioned jurisdictions.
El Salvador’s Progress and Bitfinex Securities’ Global Footprint
Since adopting Bitcoin as a legal tender in September 2021, El Salvador has seen significant progress, with its financial performance reportedly exceeding regional peers and expectations, partly due to Bitcoin-driven investment and tourism. Knutson notes the resilience of the Lightning Network capacity despite Bitcoin’s price volatility, attributing it to growing adoption in El Salvador. Bitfinex Securities, which began trading in Kazakhstan in March 2022 under the supervision of the Astana International Financial Center, initially started trading with the Blockstream Mining Note (BMN). However, the platform has experienced slow adoption in the past few months, with reports indicating no trades in a two-month period.
