Dutch cryptocurrency exchange Bitvavo is collaborating with institutional staking platform Figment to enhance its staking services.
What is Bitvavo?
Bitvavo is a leading cryptocurrency exchange based in the Netherlands, offering users the ability to buy, sell, and store various digital assets. Known for its high security standards, user-friendly interface, and wide range of supported cryptocurrencies, Bitvavo aims to provide customers with the best trading and investment experience in cryptocurrencies.
What is Figment?
Figment is an institutional staking platform that provides infrastructure for supporting various blockchain protocols. The company is renowned for its high-quality services and innovative solutions, enabling users to securely and efficiently participate in staking processes. Figment has attracted significant investments from major market players such as Galaxy Digital and continues to expand its services globally.
Expansion of Staking Services on Bitvavo
Dutch cryptocurrency exchange Bitvavo has announced a partnership with institutional staking platform Figment to offer users the opportunity to stake various tokens. Figment, which secured substantial investments from companies like Galaxy Digital in 2021, will now provide staking infrastructure on the Bitvavo exchange.
Bitvavo will stake users' assets across multiple proof-of-stake protocols, including Ethereum, Solana, and Near. Staking involves users locking up their cryptocurrency assets to support blockchain operations and receiving rewards in return.
Mark Nieuwstein, CEO and Co-Founder of Bitvavo, highlighted the company's efforts to review and enhance its products and services. The partnership with Figment adds to the diversification of their staking service providers, which already include Coinbase, Copper, and Kiln.
Nieuwstein emphasized that staking has become integral to the cryptocurrency industry and providing this service is crucial for their customer base, which exceeds 1.5 million users across the Benelux countries (Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg).
Collaborating with Figment will enable Bitvavo to ensure additional security and reliability in staking, as well as expand the services offered. "Figment is a leader in staking infrastructure, and we continue to be impressed by their expertise and market insights," noted Nieuwstein.
Eva Laurens, Head of Europe, Middle East, and Africa at Figment, mentioned that the teams worked together for six months to develop staking services across Europe. The partnership will provide access to staking rewards on newly launched networks, with Figment setting up dedicated validator nodes for Bitvavo to ensure network performance and security.
Bitvavo continues to expand its presence in Europe, having launched services for French users in November 2023 following regulatory approval from the Autorité des Marchés Financiers (AMF). Previously, the exchange expanded services to Italy in 2022 and has applied for registrations in other major European countries.
Nieuwstein previously shared insights at the European Blockchain Convention in Barcelona in October 2023, expressing optimism about the European regulatory framework enabling cryptocurrency companies to offer financial services and vice versa.
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