New York-based Circle Internet Group, Inc. has signed an undertaking with the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) and Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) that commits it to complying with the Canadian regulators’ requirements for listing and trading fiat-backed stablecoins in Canada.
On Wednesday, Circle announced that it’s the first issuer to meet the new Canadian listing rules, clearing the way for its U.S. dollar-based token, USDC, to continue being traded in the Canadian market, ahead of the regulators’ Dec. 31 deadline.
Last year, in an effort to address its long-standing investor protection concerns in the crypto space, the CSA set out its approach to stablecoins, and set a deadline of April 30 for issuers to comply or delist from trading platforms in Canada.
That deadline was extended for six months to the end of October, and it was extended again to the end of the year — stablecoins that don’t meet the requirements by that point will have to be delisted.
When the latest extension was announced, the CSA said it was “intended to provide more time for [crypto platforms] to either comply with the terms and conditions of their registration and exemptive relief decisions … or to propose alternatives that address investor protection concerns.”
In a statement, Circle said “USDC is the first stablecoin to achieve this milestone [of pledging to adhere to the CSA’s requirements], which highlights Circle’s longstanding commitment to transparency and regulatory compliance.”
“The availability of USDC in Canada underscores Circle’s compliance with emerging global regulations and marks another step forward in fostering a transparent and accountable digital financial ecosystem,” said Dante Disparte, chief strategy officer and head of global policy at Circle.
“The Canadian Securities Administrators’ proactive approach in providing a digital asset regulatory framework reinforces the integrity of digital asset markets, while ensuring continued reliance on USDC across Canada’s burgeoning ecosystem,” he added.