Bitcoin payments outfit ZBD receives first EU MiCAR approval

Bitcoin-based payments infrastructure provider ZBD says it’s become the first company to receive approval for the new EU crypto-asset service provider license under MiCAR, Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation, which goes live on 30th December.

Building a payments platform on top of the Bitcoin Lightning Network for gaming and other digital entertainment, ZBD sees the approval as an opportunity to build out its services. This expansion includes areas such as crypto-asset custody, administration, transfers, and fiat-to-crypto and crypto-to-fiat exchange. 

Powered by Bitcoin’s Lightning Network, ZBD allows users to instantly cash out their rewards, which are paid in small fractions of bitcoin in the form of sats.

ZBD COO Marca Wosoba commented, “Having already built a stable revenue-generating business gives us a great entry point to expand what we do and move towards our vision of building a payments company that can instantly move money in any currency.” 

“Being the first to have received MiCAR license approval is a major leap forward for us.” 

“We’ve built a culture where compliance is at the forefront of what we do, and we see it as an enabler for new functionality, not a blocker. MiCAR gave us an opportunity to obtain licensing across all of the EU and facilitate our expansion in the region,” he added.