Tel Aviv Stock Exchange Trades Crypto Assets

JAKARTA - The Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) is ready to allow non-banking member (NBM) clients to trade cryptocurrencies. The move was taken in response to the turmoil that occurred in the sector last year, which many monitors said was a precondition for imposing stricter regulations.

As the only public stock exchange in Israel, TASE wants to expand the official activities of its non-banking members to enable customers to trade digital currencies. Examples of such entities are brokerage firms, insurance organizations, exchanges, venture capitalists, and others.

TASE reminded of the collapse of the digital currency market in 2022, emphasizing the need to impose a relevant regulatory framework on the industry. TASE's proposal is focused on customer protection.

This allows traders to deposit fiat money in cryptocurrencies, while withdrawals can be made after non-banking members contact licensed digital asset trading service providers and official custodians.

In order to increase competition and innovation, Israeli stock exchanges think that domestic regulations must harmonize with global regulations to attract more foreign capital into the local financial ecosystem. The green light for NBM to allow customers to trade cryptocurrencies can reduce risks in the sector, encourage competition and increase innovation.

The market indicated its intention in October last year to create a blockchain-based cryptocurrency platform that would focus on smart contract technology and issuing various tokens. TASE CEO, Itai Ben-Zeev, said that the exchange will start operating within the next four years and will aim to accelerate fintech development and adoption.

The Israel Securities Authority (ISA) also revealed earlier this year that it could amend three existing financial laws to include cryptocurrencies. The amendments will allow supervisors to directly oversee the operations of digital assets and place them under the category of "financial instruments".

The goal is to provide maximum security to Israeli crypto participants and highlight the industry's technological improvements. Much like the TASE proposal, ISA believes that embracing digital assets can bring many benefits to the local economy, including foreign investment flows.

"Advanced technology in these assets can lead to economic efficiencies in many areas, reduce costs, reduce the need for intermediaries, and optimize the way information is transferred between entities," the ISA said, quoted from CryptoPotato.