The news is the result of a rigorous application process to the Luxembourg Financial Industry Supervisory Commission (known as CSSF) spanning nearly two years, which included security reviews in addition to an audit by Ernst & Young Luxembourg. Nejc Kodrič, Co-Founder and CEO of Bitstamp, believes this is an unprecedented moment for BTC and brings a new era of security and transparency to the industry. "Luxembourg is a country that is known for its long-standing history as an international leader in ePayments and data privacy as well as being the European headquarters for many global players including Amazon, PayPal and Skype and therefore embodies an exceptionally strong infrastructure as well as the financial and security awareness we seeking."

Bitcoin, the first decentralised digital money since 2009, is mined with algorithms and is limited to 21 million of bitcoins. In 2010, the price for one bitcoin was less than $1 with today's price at $470. Bitstamp's licence is passportable into the 28 EU Member States, providing all European customers with a robust, secure platform for bitcoin trading.

Bitstamp brings "golden bitcoins"

The license also brings a fully regulated and licensed trading whereby gold can be bought or sold for bitcoins within the whole European Union. In January, Moro made a strategic decision for exclusive collaboration with Bitstamp, and will be the first company to implement regulated trading with bitcoins for gold bullion across Europe.

Since the beginning of 2016, Bitstamp has allowed individuals to safely buy and sell bitcoins worldwide. Irena Moro, Director of Moro&Kunst, says that trading gold with bitcoins offers investors the opportunity to withdraw their bitcoins by converting them into gold. "This allows investors to leverage the difference between the exchange rates of BTC and gold and consequently acquire more gold at the right time. This great advantage has brought investors to our company from across the European Union, with the bullion delivered in a day or two." At Bitstamp, the third biggest market by volume, gold is traded from one gram to one-kilo parcels.