French Financial Regulator Grants License to Societe Generale, Paving the Way for Crypto Services

Societe Generale's (GLE) cryptocurrency division, SG Forge, has become the first company to receive a license to offer crypto services in France from the country's financial regulator.

SG Forge is licensed to provide buying and selling, exchange and custody of digital assets as of July 18, according to the Autorité des Marchés Financiers (AMF)'s website.

While dozens of crypto firms, including the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, Binance, are registered with the AMF, the crypto division of France's third-largest bank by market cap is the first to receive a license.

Registration is necessary for firms to provide crypto custody, exchange or trading services in France.

Licensing requires the firm to be established in France and for it to "comply with certain requirements in terms of organisation, financial resources and business conduct," according to the AMF.

Therefore, licensing should demonstrate a greater deal of compliance with regulatory requirements than does registration.

With the approval, the unit “confirms its pioneering role in the crypto assets ecosystem,” SG Forge CEO Jean-Marc Stenger said in a statement, citing an “important step” for the Ethereum-based CoinVertible stablecoin (EURCV).

Read More: Crédit Agricole’s CACEIS Gains Crypto Custody Registration in France

UPDATE (July 19, 09:42 UTC): Adds additional detail about nature of AMF licensing.

UPDATE (July 19, 11:14 UTC): Adds SG Forge comment in last paragraph.