Irish Central Bank Scuppers Plans for Retail Crypto Trading

It may be rumored to be the destination for Binance’s new headquarters, but Ireland remains unlikely to give the go-ahead for a retail Alternative Investment Fund any time soon.

The country’s central bank has just released a report in which it highlights areas of risk for financial services companies.

Referring to new products, the central bank says it has seen an increase in queries in relation to Undertakings for Collective Investment in Transferable Securities (UCITS) and retail AIFs in crypto assets. 

However, it said it is “highly unlikely to approve” them, as “appropriate risk assessment could be difficult for a retail investor without a high degree of expertise.”

That said, the bank did not rule out allowing exchange-traded products aimed at institutional investors.

Ireland has a long history of attracting overseas investment, playing host to the European operations of Google, Apple, HP, IBM and many others. 

Indeed, the country is second only to Singapore as the most attractive global destination for Foreign Direct Investment.

Binance considering Ireland headquarters

Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao hinted that Ireland could become a base for the exchange after registering three new business in the country, including Binance Exchange (Ie).

Last October, Mr Zhao told The Irish Independent: “Historically, we claim that we don’t have headquarters. We are actually just in the process of establishing a few headquarters in different parts of the world.”

And when asked if Ireland featured in plans to establish a physical headquarters in any particular country, Mr Zhao replied: Yes, it does,” refusing to elaborate further.

The company established Binance (Ie), Binance (Services) Holdings and Binance Technologies in September last year. 

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