Crypto Exchange Binance Receives License to Operate in Kazakhstan

Crypto exchange Binance got a license to operate in Kazakhstan, according to a press release on Thursday.

The license from the Astana Financial Services Authority(AFSA) will enable Binance to have the status of a regulated platform that can operate as a digital asset and custody services provider at the Astana International Financial Center.

The Astana International Financial Center is a regional platform that focuses on the development of services related to digital assets. In August the exchange got preliminary approval from the Astana Financial Services Authority.

The exchange has been working with Kazakhstan to help it develop rules for cryptocurrency firms as the country looks to boost its digital asset industry.

In May, Binance said that it would help the country develop digital asset regulation. At the same time, the exchange has bolstered its compliance team and garnered approvals and provisional approvals from other countries and jurisdictions, including France, Dubai and Spain after drawing the ire of regulators in countries such as the U.K. and Japan last year and Uzbekistan and Israel this year.

“We are proud to announce that Binance has taken another step in its quest to be a compliance-focused exchange,” Gleb Kostarev, Binance's Asia director, said in the press release.