Trading Platform eToro Gains New York BitLicense to Provide Crypto Services

Social investing and trading platform eToro secured a license to offer crypto services in the state of New York, the company said Tuesday.

The New York State Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) approved a virtual currency license – known as a BitLicense – for the platform’s eToro NY LLC subsidiary along with a money transmitter license. Together, the two will allow users in the state to access eToro’s “virtual portfolio, integrated social investing tools and be able to trade stocks, crypto and options” once the platform is operational.

Including eToro, the NYDFS now regulates 33 entities under the BitLicense, which was set up in 2015. The regulator has faced heavy criticism from the crypto industry over restrictive measures, high compliance costs and in some cases, long wait times.

Crypto firm Coin Cafe, for example, secured a BitLicense in January; the firm had applied for one in August 2015. Prior to that, PayPal was the last to convert conditional approval into a full BitLicense, in June 2022.

Securing the New York licenses is a “key milestone” in the company’s expansion across the U.S., eToro co-founder and CEO Yoni Assia said in a statement shared with CoinDesk.

The company already has a presence in the country. EToro USA Securities Inc. is a broker-dealer registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission, while eToro USA LLC is registered with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) as a Money Services Business, according to its website.

The company has yet to set a date for when the New York platform will be operational and accessible to users, it told CoinDesk.

Read more: In Wake of FTX, New York Reminds Crypto Firms to Segregate Customer Funds