New York regulators approve Ethereum trading on exchange for the first time

Rage Commentary : New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced on Thursday that he approved Gemini Trust Company (founded by investors Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss) to trade the digital currency Ethereum on the New York Bitcoin Exchange. The approval of the New York Financial Services Department marks the first time that New York State has agreed to use services related to digital currencies other than Bitcoin. Since the issuance of Ethereum last year, the demand for Ethereum has been growing.

Translation: Nicole

May 5 (Reuters) - New York Governor Andrew Cuomo on Thursday approved Gemini Trust Co, founded by investors Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, to trade the digital currency Ethereum on its New York bitcoin exchange.

Ether is an alternative currency to Bitcoin and is the token or digital asset of the Ethereum platform, which is the blockchain (public ledger) platform where all Ether transactions are conducted. The Ethereum platform automatically executes peer-to-peer contracts using Ether without intermediaries. Ether is usually used by software developers.

Andrew Cuomo

Cuomo said in the statement:

“A sound regulatory system will allow us to solidify our position through blockchain technology reform while ensuring a safe and reliable user experience.”

The DFS’s approval marks the first time New York State has approved services related to digital currencies other than bitcoin.

Gemini co-founder and chairman Cameron Winklevoss said in an interview with Reuters that trading in ether will begin on Monday, May 9, and consumers will be able to deposit some ether starting Thursday and trade it on the exchange on Monday.

Winklevoss also said his brother’s investment firm Winklevoss Capital is a “significant” holder of Ethereum.

Cameron Winklevoss

Winklevoss said:

“We started buying ether at the beginning of the year, and now the Ethereum Foundation has accumulated a lot of ether, and since then we have started to raise funds for the foundation, and developers are also signing further agreements.”

The Winklevoss brothers chose to trade Ethereum on the exchange because they were attracted by the "unique properties" of Ethereum and Bitcoin.

Winklevoss said:

“Ether has a place on our platform, and it can do things that Bitcoin can’t do. So there’s a standard for what the digital currency should be that’s different from Bitcoin and that makes sense for our platform.

Ethereum was trading at $9.97 on Thursday, with a market value of $795 million, according to coinmarketcap.com, second only to Bitcoin, which currently has a market value of $6.9 billion. Ethereum's daily trading volume is about $20 million.

Winklevoss said:

“If you want to exchange currency, the U.S. requires at least a currency exchange certificate in each state. Currently, people who are trading Ethereum do not have a certificate and are trading outside the prescribed hours.”

Since the launch of Ethereum last year, demand for Ethereum has been growing.

Imogen Heap

In addition to developers, British pop musician Imogen Heap has put his music on the Ethereum platform, Winklevoss said:

“Most people who are trading ether right now are developers who are building smart contract applications on the Ethereum platform, and they need ether to do their development. She (Heap) created a smart contract on the Ethereum platform, and if you pay enough ether for the smart contract to execute, you can download her music.”