Coinbase’s CEO does not rule out moving the company out of the United States.

Bloomberg – Cryptocurrency Exchange Coinbase Global Inc. (COIN) may consider moving its headquarters out of the United States unless the country changes its approach to regulation, said the CEO of Coinbase Global Inc. Tuesday.

“Anything is on the table,” Armstrong said when asked by former British Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne at a financial technology conference in London. San Francisco-based Coinbase will consider moving to Britain. “Including, you know, transfer abroad or whatever it takes.”

Although Armstrong has been outspoken about the lack of clarity in current cryptocurrency regulations in the United States, raising the possibility of action is an escalation of rhetoric. to In late March, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) notified Coinbase that the regulator was planning to take legal action against the exchange.

US lawmakers have yet to agree on a series of laws that could design regulation of the cryptocurrency sector. At the same time, there is a dispute between the Securities and Exchange Commission and the CFTC over which regulator is best suited to oversee the nascent sector, based on whether crypto assets like bitcoin and ether should be considered securities or raw materials.

“The USA. is potentially an important market in cryptocurrency, but at the moment we don’t see that necessary regulatory clarity”Armstrong said, adding that the UK is Coinbase’s second largest market globally in terms of revenue. “I think if there are several years where we don’t see regulatory clarity emerging in the US, we may need to consider increasing investment in other regions of the world.”

European base

Bloomberg News reported in March that Coinbase, which has about 100 million verified users, is in talks with market makers and investment firms about creating an alternative headquarters for global clients. It has around 300 employees in its UK office, and was authorized as an Electronic Money Provider by the Financial Conduct Authority in 2018.

The company is talking “very actively” with policymakers and governments across Europe about where it could establish its regional hub, According to Nana Murugesan, Vice President of International Business Development.

“It’s something we hope to achieve in the short term in the next few months, but there are many good options out there,” Murugesan said in an interview on Monday. the The stock market already has a large presence in Germany and Ireland, as well as registrations with regulators in the Netherlands and Italy.

Coinbase also plans to apply for similar permits in Spain and France. Cryptocurrency companies such as Circle Internet Financial Ltd. and Binance Holdings Ltd. in France last year, spurred on by President Emmanuel Macron’s efforts to turn the country into a powerhouse for the sector.

The European Union is preparing to pass the Crypto Asset Markets Directive (MiCA) on Thursday, the most comprehensive cryptocurrency-specific legislation among the developed world’s economies. The new regulation, which will take effect in 2024, will allow cryptocurrency firms registered in a single EU member state to process their licenses throughout the bloc.

Read more at Bloomberg.com