Finland's cryptocurrency regulation has officially taken full effect. The Finnish Financial Supervisory Authority (FIN-FSA) announced on November 1 that it has registered the first five crypto service providers, granting them legal status to operate in the country. A FIN-FSA spokesperson confirmed to news.Bitcoin.com: “Starting from 1st of November these five virtual currency providers are the only ones allowed to operate in Finland.” The grace period for operating without registration has expired.
The Five Registered Providers
The approved entities are: Localbitcoins, a global peer-to-peer Bitcoin marketplace; Northcrypto, which offers exchange services for BTC and LTC against EUR; Tesseract Group (formerly WhaleLend), providing asset management, OTC trading, and lending services; and Prasos, a larger group operating under multiple brands including Coinmotion (a multi-currency investment platform supporting BTC, LTC, ETH, XRP, and XLM, as well as private crypto banking, white-label solutions, and merchant services), Bittiraha (Bitcoin community and broker), Denarium (physical Bitcoin manufacturer), and Bittimaatti (Bitcoin ATM network). Prasos Cash Management is also part of the registration.
Stringent Registration and Compliance Requirements
The registration process, as FIN-FSA explained, “requires significant effort from the applicants, for example concerning customer due diligence and written documentation of activities.” The regulator assessed whether applicants had adequate measures in areas such as anti-money laundering (AML), countering terrorist financing (CFT), holding and safeguarding client assets, and having a sound management structure. The registrants submitted written statements describing their compliance. Going forward, FIN-FSA will monitor them through clarifications and inspections. The regulator reiterated: “From 1 November 2019, only virtual currency providers who fulfill the requirements provided by legislation may practice activities in Finland.” Non-compliant providers face activity prohibition and fines.
Regulatory Foundation: The Act on Virtual Currency Providers
Finland's Act on Virtual Currency Providers (572/2019) came into force on May 1, 2019, designating FIN-FSA as the registration and supervisory authority. The law is based on the EU's Anti-Money Laundering Directive. Crypto issuers, exchanges, marketplace operators, and wallet providers are required to register. FIN-FSA defines a “wallet provider” as “a natural or legal person who holds virtual currency for the account of some other party or provides for the transfer or storage of virtual currency.” Exemptions exist for traders providing crypto services within a limited network or occasionally, and for professional activities requiring other authorizations. “New providers of virtual currencies may not start the provision of services in Finland before their registration application has been approved,” FIN-FSA warned. The move marks a significant step in Finland's efforts to bring crypto activities under formal oversight, ensuring consumer protection and financial integrity.