Canada Registers First Cryptocurrency Investment Fund
The B.C. Securities Commission provides registration and tools for First Block Capital Inc. to begin working as an exempt market dealer as a bitcoin investment fund.
On September 6, the British Columbia Securities Commission announced that it would be allowing First Block Capital Inc. operational status. The investment fund seeks to be the first in Canada to allow investors to safely and legally invest in cryptocurrencies. Moreover, First Block Capital Inc. will be equipped with tools to help monitor any changes or developments in this new field.
Zach Masum, leader of BSCS’s Tech Team reported that:
“Cryptocurrency investments are a new and novel form of investing in Canada. We have seen from the market and from investors that there is a strong appetite for access to these kinds of investments.”
The primary objectives for Masum’s team are to remain within the boundaries of current regulatory standards, while also allowing flexibility in such a new field. The risks involved with working with cryptocurrencies are numerous, but First Block Capital Inc. hopes to attract more traditional investor types by ensuring customary security standards.
It is also important to recognize the fact that the investment risks are not only related to the registrant, “but also to the bitcoin fund’s custodian, a third party chosen to facilitate the safekeeping and exchange of bitcoins,” reported BSCS.
Masum and the Tech Team were assembled in January 2017 to sponsor a Regulatory Sandbox Initiative in Canada that would seek to explore more fintech innovations in the country. The group will not only sponsor innovations in the field but will allow for harmonious and legislatively correct market entrances.
As investors keep a close eye on First Block Capital Inc., Masum reminds business owners that, “We strongly encourage other companies in British Columbia, whether they are potential new registrants or existing investment fund managers, to contact the BCSC’s Tech Team if they are considering pursuing cryptocurrency investments in their funds. The Tech Team can help ensure compliance with securities regulation, which can help save time and potential costs later on.”
If successful in the coming months, First Block Capital Inc. and the BSCS could pave the way for a growing cryptocurrency market in Canada. The emergence of a cryptocurrency fund in Canada follows on from the adoption of bitcoin by Falcon Group, the first Swiss private bank to do so, for its clients.
