The New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) has issued its 20th and 21st Virtual Currency Licenses to Seed Digital Commodities Market (SCXM) and Zero Hash LLC – two subsidiaries of Seed CX. The regulator also approved an application from Zero Hash for a money transmitter license, allowing the company to custody and settle fiat currency.
The Virtual Currency Licences authorize SCXM to operate as a matching engine for cryptocurrency traders and as a platform facilitating block trades in crypto for large trading firms and financial institutions, with Zero Hash providing money transmission services for the trading activity on SCXM. Through its subsidiaries, Seed CX comprises a cryptocurrency exchange seeking to target institutional traders, requiring licensing for each entity.
Seed CX currently supports Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Litecoin (LTC), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), and Paxos Standard Token (PAX) pairings, and settlement in 20 different fiat currencies.
Seed CX Issued Multiple Licenses Due to Bifurcated Structure
Edward Woodford, co-founder and chief executive officer of Seed CX, described the licensing as a significant milestone in the company’s growth stating:
As virtual currency license holders we will be able to expand trading and settlement services to New York firms through our institutional platform that offers the strong institutional technology, the operational support, and the regulatory compliance that institutions demand.
NYDFS Superintendent Linda Lacewell stated:
We are pleased to have approved over 20 virtual currency businesses, and welcome Seed Digital Commodities Market and Zero Hash to New York’s growing virtual currency marketplace.
She added that the approval of the new licenses “will provide institutional customers with more choice while also protecting consumers and the public through strong anti-money laundering, cybersecurity and other compliance standards in a continuously evolving global financial services marketplace.”
Seed CX Expands Operations in 2019
In recent months, Seed CX announced partnerships with Caspian, Avelacom, and Hydra X. The company first launched BTC/USD, ETH/USD, LTC/USD, and BCH/USD pairing durings January 2019, with Seed CX also hoping to soon offer a digital asset derivatives market regulated by the United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
During September 2018, Seed CX raised $15 million in a Series B funding round led by Bain Capital Ventures, bringing the total sum raised by the company to $25 million.
