In recent years, Switzerland’s blockchain and digital asset ecosystem has matured rapidly and grown into one of the world’s leading blockchain hubs, a position that’s asserted by its expanding workforce and a rising number of foreign companies setting up operations locally. A report by Home of Blockchain.swiss, a new public-private promotion initiative for the Swiss blockchain industry, looks at the state of the Swiss digital asset market, sharing findings from a survey of 47 industry participants to extract critical insights. The report highlights Switzerland’s strength in the digital asset market, noting that several high-profile international digital asset startups have recently set foot in the country. FTX, a cryptocurrency exchange and derivatives trading
Topics:
Fintechnews Switzerland considers the following as important: 6c.) Fintechnews, Blockchain/Bitcoin, Featured, newsletter, Switzerland
This could be interesting, too:
RIA Team writes The Benefits of Starting Retirement Planning Early in Your Career
Swissinfo writes Swiss residential real estate to remain in demand in 2025
Thomas J. DiLorenzo writes Stakeholder Capitalism and the Corporate KPI Cult
Swissinfo writes Parliament stalemate on abolishing Swiss homeowner tax
In recent years, Switzerland’s blockchain and digital asset ecosystem has matured rapidly and grown into one of the world’s leading blockchain hubs, a position that’s asserted by its expanding workforce and a rising number of foreign companies setting up operations locally.
A report by Home of Blockchain.swiss, a new public-private promotion initiative for the Swiss blockchain industry, looks at the state of the Swiss digital asset market, sharing findings from a survey of 47 industry participants to extract critical insights.
The report highlights Switzerland’s strength in the digital asset market, noting that several high-profile international digital asset startups have recently set foot in the country.
FTX, a cryptocurrency exchange and derivatives trading platform valued US$32 billion, established its European headquarters in Switzerland earlier this year after acquiring local startup Digital Assets.
BitMEX, another crypto exchange and derivatives trading platform, announced in October 2021 its expansion into Switzerland, unveiling the forthcoming launch of a digital asset brokerage service called BitMEX Link. The company cited Switzerland’s status as a “regional hotspot for great talent,” its growing blockchain ecosystem and its advanced institutional framework as the main reasons why it chose the country to host its new office.
And Fireblocks, an institutional digital asset custody, transfer and settlement platform from New York, opened an office in Switzerland in September 2021 to expand its presence in the German, Austrian and Swiss (DACH) market and address the increase in demand from financial institutions.
In addition to international digital asset companies setting foot in Switzerland, the report also notes the increasing number of employees in the digital asset ecosystem, indicative of the sector’s growth and dynamism.
The 47 entities surveyed reported a total of 1,283 full-time equivalents (FTE) working fully in a digital asset related area. Including all other staff, a total of 3,930 people worked with the entities polled, as of late 2021.
An another strong indicator of the growth of the sector is the expanding digital asset offering by Swiss entities, ranging from token issuance and staking, to lending and non-fungible token (NFT) services.
Bitcoin Suisse, a provider of crypto-financial services, launched a native decentralized finance (DeFi) offering in April 2022, allowing select clients to access blockchain-based credit.
Last year, Swissquote, Switzerland’s largest online bank, shared with Finews.com ambitions to become “the leading Swiss provider of digital assets,” announcing plans to launch its own crypto exchange in 2022. The company also said it was looking to add more cryptocurrencies to its trading offering, in addition to stablecoins and staking services.
And Mt Pelerin, a regulated fintech company providing crypto brokerage services to retail and business clients, wallet services and asset tokenization services, teamed up with DeFi project Jarvis Network in July 2021 to introduce three new stablecoins tracking the price of the euro, British pound, and Swiss franc, and boost trading.
Booming digital asset trading activity
The rise of the Swiss digital asset market comes on the back of surging digital asset trading activities. In 2021, total crypto trading volume ballooned to CHF 103 billion, a drastic rise compared to previous years, a research by the Institute of Financial Services Zug IFZ and Swisscom shows.
Direct investments through crypto exchange platforms, like Binance and Bitstamp, led in terms of volume, with total investments through the 15 largest centralized exchanges amounting to an estimated CHF 92.6 billion between October 2020 and September 2021.
During the same period, indirect investment products, including exchange-traded products (ETPs) and structured products like tracker certificates and mini-futures, totaled roughly CHF 7 billion on the SIX Swiss Exchange.
Finally, investments through the 15 largest decentralized crypto exchanges, including Uniswap and Sushiswap, totaled nearly CHF 4 billion.
A recent report by PwC, in partnership with Finery Markets and Alternative Investment Management Association (AIMA), named Switzerland “the leading country in digital asset trading,” pointing out the stable and secure political environment, the country’s experience and reputation of a leading global financial center, and the robust legal framework, as the main enablers of Switzerland’s burgeoning digital asset ecosystem.
So far, the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) has granted regulatory approval to at least four companies focusing on digital assets and cryptocurrencies: SEBA Bank and Sygnum Bank each hold a banking license; and Crypto Finance and Taurus both received their securities firm licenses in 2021.
In addition, FINMA has granted so-called Fintech Licenses to four entities since introducing the license category back in 2019: Klarpay, a banking offering targeted at digital entrepreneurs; Mogli, a digital payment platform for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs); SR Saphirstein, a startup building a payment network between Europe and Asia; and Yapeal, a digital banking offering.
You Might Also Like
Binance Sets up at Paris’ STATION F to Develop the Web.3 Ecosystem in Europe
2022-04-14
Binance, a global blockchain ecosystem and cryptocurrency infrastructure provider, announced the opening of its space in at the startup campus STATION F in Paris.
Global Blockchain Sector Surged in 2021
2022-04-12
2021 was a blockbuster year for the global blockchain sector, which saw funding activity surge, trading volumes balloon and further growth in key segments including custodians, exchanges, decentralized finance (DeFi), as well as non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and the metaverse, a new report by Swiss blockchain-focused investment company CV VC, in collaboration with PwC Switzerland, says.
Wolters Kluwer Partners NYDIG to Roll Out Bitcoin Regulatory Risk Assessment
2022-03-20
Wolters Kluwer Compliance Solutions has collaborated with Bitcoin company NYDIG to launch the Bitcoin Risk Assessment. The Risk Assessment evaluates a financial institution’s control environment related to its participation in the NYDIG Bitcoin platform.
Swiss Blockchain Startup Wecan Chooses France for Its Expansion
2022-03-11
Wecan Group SA, a Swiss Blockchain software provider used Swiss private banks, is favoring an expansion in France for its internationalization. Behind this choice: an investment from Michel Reybier, owner of La Réserve hotels, and a selection in the Swave program, an initiative of the French government to attract the most promising fintechs in France.
TransUnion Taps Spring Labs to Bring Credit Data to Public Blockchain Networks
2022-01-18
Blockchain-based data-sharing platform Spring Labs announced that is bringing TransUnion’s identity and credit data on-chain to help accelerate Web 3 and DeFi adoption.
Swiss Crypto Industry Unfazed by New Year Bitcoin Crash
2022-01-10
The New Year has started with a sharp fall in the price of bitcoin – and some intriguing stories surrounding the Swiss cryptocurrency scene. The industry is well used to volatility in the price of cryptocurrencies and is ploughing on with expansion plans regardless of how many dollars you can currently get for your bitcoin.
New Bitcoin Suisse CEO Announced
2022-01-07
Bitcoin Suisse announced that Dr. Dirk Klee, currently CEO Wealth Management & Investments of Barclays UK, will take over as Chief Executive Officer of Bitcoin Suisse as of April 1, 2022.
Dr. Arthur Vayloyan will step down from his current role as Chief Executive Officer on March 31, 2022 and will remain a member of the Board of Directors of Bitcoin Suisse.
Roll Out of Digital Euro Could Transform Payments in Germany
2021-12-15
A digital programmable euro is essential for innovative business models in Germany, according to the Frankfurt School Blockchain Centre (FSBC).
Tags: Blockchain/Bitcoin,Featured,newsletter,Switzerland