Circle secures conditional DASP registration in France, appoints new country head
Fintech firm Circle has secured a conditional Digital Asset Service Provider (DASP) registration from the French Financial Markets Authority (AMF).
Circle receives conditional DASP registration in France
The company has also appointed payments industry veteran Coralie Billmann as head of French operations, subject to regulatory approval.
Circle describes Billmann as a “respected payments industry leader”. Prior to joining Circle, she served as chief operating officer and board member at 3S Money for over a year, helping the firm launch its payments activity in Europe. Prior to that, she worked at JP Morgan in Paris leading payments high growth tech sales, and before that, as EMEA treasurer for PayPal for almost nine years.
For Circle to kickstart its operations in France and lift the conditions on its registration, it will have to secure approval as a payment services provider (PSP) or register as a PSP agent. This condition will be met after obtaining an Electronic Money Institution (EMI) licence, for which Circle says it has applied.
In her new role, Billmann is expected to play an “instrumental role” in enabling the company to prepare for the forthcoming Markets in Crypto Assets Regulation (MiCA) regime and ensure passportability for Circle’s products and services.
“The issuance of this conditional DASP registration in France marks a significant early milestone as we work towards establishing our European regulatory platform,” comments Jeremy Allaire, co-founder, CEO and chairman at Circle.
“With Coralie Billmann joining Circle, her deep market expertise and leadership will be instrumental in furthering our regulatory efforts and deepening our connections in France.”
Dante Disparte, Circle’s chief strategy officer and head of global policy, adds that the firm chose to register in France owing to its “clear rules” with regards to fintech and digital assets, as well as its “dynamic” banking and financial services ecosystem.
