FILE PHOTO: A representation of the virtual cryptocurrency Bitcoin is seen in this picture illustration taken October 18, 2021. REUTERS/Edgar Su/file photo
LONDON (Reuters) - The crypto arm of Japanese investment bank and brokerage Nomura said on Tuesday it had won an operating licence in Dubai, the latest in a number of mainstream financial institutions this year to enter the crypto sector.
Laser Digital, which is headquartered in Switzerland with officers in Dubai and London, said in a statement it had received the licence from Dubai's Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority, allowing it to offer crypto-related broker-dealer, management and investment services.
Laser said it would launch its trading and asset management business in the coming months, allowing institutional investors access to over-the-counter crypto trading and other investment products.
French bank Societe Generale became last month the first company in France to obtain a licence for crypto services, underscoring resilient hunger among mainstream banks to embrace crypto as markets have rallied through 2023.
Top token bitcoin has gained about 75% so far this year, a recovery of sorts from a 2022 punctuated by corporate scandals and plummeting token prices. However, the asset remains less than half its all-time high of $69,000.
(Reporting by Tom Wilson, Editing by Louise Heavens)
