by BLOOMBERG

BINANCE Holdings Ltd., the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, has secured regulatory approval from the French government, boosting its operational plans across the European continent.

Binance obtained a digital-asset service provider registration, the Paris-based markets authority AMF said on its website, confirming an earlier Bloomberg report. The regulatory nod will help bolster the company’s ambitions in Europe and marks the exchange’s first major approval from a G-7 member nation.

Bank of France Governor Francois Villeroy de Galhau had previously touted Binance’s interest in setting up a base in Paris, and the firm’s co-founder and chief executive officer Changpeng “CZ” Zhao lauded the country as one of the “pro-crypto” jurisdictions.

“This is a huge step,” Zhao said in an interview on Bloomberg TV. “This opens the door for us to get more licenses in Europe and elsewhere in the world.”

Last month, he spoke at Paris Blockchain Week and Binance confirmed a 100-million-euro ($105 million) investment into the nation’s blockchain ecosystem. The company said it would make Paris its European hub, initially recruiting up to 250 people focused on crypto and blockchain infrastructure development.

The approval in France is the latest sign that the world’s largest crypto firms are gaining momentum with regulatory bodies in certain strategic markets. In recent months, Binance has secured nods from Bahrain, Dubai and Abu Dhabi, while rivals FTX and Kraken got licenses in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, respectively.

Even so, other jurisdictions like Singapore have clamped down with stricter crypto-licensing regimes, citing risks to retail investors as well as concerns that digital assets might be used for money laundering and terrorist financing.