_(cropped).png){kind=logo} | |
| Type | Cryptocurrency Exchange |
|---|---|
| Location | Luxembourg City, Luxembourg |
| Founded | 2011 |
| Key people | Jean-Baptiste Graftieaux (CEO), Nejc Kodrič (co-founder), Damian Merlak (co-founder) |
| Website | www |
Bitstamp is a Luxembourg-basedcryptocurrency exchange founded in 2011. It is the world’s longest-running cryptocurrency exchange. It allowstrading between fiatcurrency,bitcoin and othercryptocurrencies, such as theU.S. dollar, theeuro, thepound sterling,Ethereum,Litecoin,Ripple,Bitcoin Cash,Algorand,Stellar, andUSD Coin. Business operations are conducted from its registered headquarters inLuxembourg City, with a satellite office inLjubljana.
The company was founded as a European-focused alternative to then-dominant bitcoin exchangeMt. Gox.[1] While the company trades in US dollars, it acceptsfiat money deposits for free only via the European Union'sSingle Euro Payments Area, a mechanism for transferring money between European bank accounts.[citation needed]
Nejc Kodrič, a widely known member of the bitcoin community, co-founded the company in August 2011 with Damijan Merlak in his nativeSlovenia, but later moved its registration to the UK in April 2013, then to Luxembourg in 2016.[nb 1] Bitstamp outsourced certain operations to the UK due to the lack of adequate financial and legal services in Slovenia.[1]
When incorporating in the United Kingdom, the company approached the UK'sFinancial Conduct Authority for guidance, but was told that bitcoin was not classed as a currency, so the exchange was not subject to regulation. Bitstamp says that it instead regulates itself, following a set of best practices to authenticate customers and deter money laundering. In September 2013, the company began requiring account holders toverify their identity with copies of their passports and official records of their home address.[citation needed]
In April 2016, the Luxembourgish government granted a license to Bitstamp to be fully regulated in the EU as a payment institution, allowing it to do business in all 28 EU member states.[2]
In August 2017, Bitstamp added trading of Ether to the company’s platform.[3]
In October 2018, an investment company based in Belgium acquired Bitstamp in an all cash deal.[4][5]
In May 2023, Ripple acquired a stake in Bitstamp for an undisclosed amount.[6][7]
In September 2023, Bitstamp removed Ethereum from the company’s platform in the United States.[8]
In June 2024,Robinhood acquired Bitstamp for $200 million.[9] The acquisition will not be complete until early 2025.[10]
In February 2014, the company suspended withdrawals for several days in the face of adistributed denial-of-service.[11][12]Bitcoin Magazine reported that people behind the attack sent a ransom demand of 75 bitcoins to Kodrič, who refused due to a company policy against negotiating with “terrorists”.[13]
In January 2015, Bitstamp suspended its service after a hack during which less than 19,000 bitcoins were stolen,[14][15] reopening nearly a week later.[16]
In September 2018 theNew York Attorney General office produced a 42-page "Virtual Markets Integrity Initiative Report", after requesting fourteen virtual currency exchanges to participate in a survey. The report aimed to create greater transparency regarding security, anti-hacking measures and business practices. Bitstamp was among ten platforms that responded; it is noted that of these ten, Bitstamp was among the seven that confirmed that they had sought approval, directly or through a subsidiary, from the New York State Department of Financial Services (“DFS”) to operate a virtual currency business inNew York State. The report goes on to say that such approval implies an agreement to actively protect deposited funds, prevent money laundering and illegal activity, and respond to other risks. Bitstamp was one of two exchanges that claimed to block access to their exchange byVPNs. In addition to providing fee policies, Bitstamp also claimed to conduct audits of their virtual currency holdings.[17]
