Our VASP license has been renewed.

On 20th of September 2023 Wert’s License No. FVT000174 for Virtual currency service has been renewed by Estonian FIU. We’re now officially one of approximately 100 survivors, fully compliant with the new set of regulations for virtual asset services. The whole process of re-examination took 14 months.

Obtaining a VASP licence shows a very high level of trust from one of the most experienced regulators in the crypto industry. We’ve been checked, reviewed, our policies have been tested, our share capital has been increased and our management has been interviewed. FIU not only examines AML policies, but also company financials, information security procedures and what's more important governance. They are accessing whether we as a company are fit to run the business. 

Estonia has been on the forefront of crypto regulation, it was the first country in the world to introduce a crypto licensing regime. It happened in 2017, way back into the ICO era. Since then, the regulation changed several times and it became more and more complicated not only to acquire a licence, but to operate a licensed company. As a result, most of the shell or inactive companies have ceased to exist and only players that fit stay. 

The last change in regulation happened in 2021 following the introduction of MiCa (Markets in Crypto Assets), a EU wide regulation. Estonia decided to anticipate the future changes and implemented most if not all requirements in existing legislation, so existing VASPs would be compliant with MiCa. This places Wert ahead of waves of change that will happen next year in the European VASP landscape. 

We look forward to continuing our journey as a trusted and innovative player in this dynamic landscape. Great times ahead.