Central Bank authorises crypto firm Ripple

US payment and exchange company Ripple has become the latest crypto firm to be authorised under the Central Bank of Ireland’s virtual asset service provider (VASP) regime, bringing it under the regulator’s supervision for the purposes of compliance with anti-money laundering and criminal financing rules.

Ripple Markets Ireland Ltd, a Dublin-registered subsidiary of technology company Ripple Labs, was added to the Central Bank’s list of VASPs on Tuesday, December 13th.

It means that the Central Bank is satisfied that Ripple’s Irish subsidiary has effective policies and controls in place to meet its anti-money laundering and criminal financing obligations under Irish and European law.

Under the VASP regime, the company, which operates a blockchain-backed payment and exchange network and also created the XRP crypto token, will be able to provide some digital asset services to customers in the Republic.

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It is also likely an indication that the company will seek to apply for authorisation in Ireland under the Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) regulations that come into force across the EU next year. Once a firm receives its MiCA clearance from a competent national authority – in the State’s case, the Central Bank – in one EU country, it can then passport its services to markets across the bloc.

In a statement, Eric van Miltenberg, senior vice-president for strategic initiatives at Ripple, said the Republic has positioned itself as a “supportive jurisdiction” for crypto and virtual asset firms, and “consequently as a great place for businesses like Ripple’s to operate, reinforcing our decision to select Ireland as our primary regulator in the EU”.

Ripple joins a growing list of crypto exchange and custody firms to receive authorisation from the Central Bank under the VASP regime, including Coinbase, Gemini and Kraken.

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