Blockchain technology platform Bakkt looks to Europe after MiCA

International regulations for cryptocurrency are improving and the company is eyeing an expansion of retail on the continent, said Dan O’Prey, Chief Product Officer of Bakkt. Overall, O’Prey saw positive long-term trends.

Speaking to Sam Bourgi, Cointelegraph’s US news editor, at Bitcoin 2023, O’Prey described that Bakkt has prioritized its role as a “B2B2C” company for the past two years. As such, it has seen “a significant portion of major institutional interest” focused on Bitcoin (BTC), despite the aftermath of the collapse of cryptocurrency exchange FTX. He said:

“We saw a lot of ramifications and issues last year with companies, practices and coins in this space that I think dragged Bitcoin along even though they had nothing to do with Bitcoin.”

Bitcoin has benefited from the lack of regulatory clarity in the United States relative to other cryptocurrencies as its status as a commodity has been established by regulators. Nevertheless, the lack of regulatory clarity in the US for cryptocurrencies in general has been “definitely the main hurdle” to Bitcoin adoption, says O’Prey.

“Getting things right has slowed things down a bit over the past three or four years, but now we’re in a much stronger position and recent events have highlighted the need for those practices.”

Bakkt’s retail platform for embedded trading, payouts, and rewards only operates in the US, but Bakkt plans to expand its retail business internationally. According to the blockchain executive, the company is working with some of our partners to identify jurisdictions where they may already be trading stocks or want to add or already have a presence in crypto.

This is hell. pic.twitter.com/MVguNYebUA

— Dan O’Prey ⚡ (@danoprey) May 19, 2023

O’Prey praised the Markets in Crypto-Assets regulation recently passed in the European Union: “Any kind of clarity is generally good. […] At least people know where they stand, they know how to operate and they know how to comply, and that enables companies and institutions to participate in the space,” he said, adding that regions that need clarity on the regulation of crypto,” will get a lot of influx of talent, of capital [and] of jobs.”

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