Coinbase opens Dublin office amid Brexit uncertainty

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San Francisco-based cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase (NASDAQ: COIN) has announced the opening of a Dublin site, its second office in Europe.

In a blog post, Coinbase Vice-President for Operations and Technology Tina Bhatnagar said, “Our new office will help us tap into the city’s diverse talent pool and long-standing support for technological innovation, including a burgeoning cryptocurrency economy.”

She said that the team in Dublin “will complement Coinbase operations in London and host a variety of new business-related functions, including roles for which we’re hiring right now.”

Ireland’s Minister for Financial Services and Insurance Michael D’Arcy said, “This decision highlights the competitive offering and attractiveness of Ireland for financial services.”

Coinbase UK CEO Zeeshan Feroz told CNBC that uncertainty in the implementation of policies after Great Britain’s 2016 vote to separate from the European Union (EU), “played some part in the decision.” He also pointed out that “[t]he EU is our most significant market outside the U.S.”

Martin Shanahan, CEO of IDA Ireland, the country’s inward investment promotion agency, said, “Dublin is a talent hotspot for companies like Coinbase as they scale and internationalize critical business operations.”

Last month, the UK Parliament’s Treasury committee released a report that recommended for additional oversight of the cryptocurrency trade, to be handled by the Financial Conduct Authority. The report denied that cryptocurrencies served as media of exchange, due to their volatility in price.

Coinbase has also recently opened an office in New York, to focus mainly on institutional clients. The New York office currently has a work force of 20, but is set to increase by 150 next year, to handle the expansion.

Even at present, regular users are reportedly experiencing delays with withdrawal of funds. Some 200 pages of complaints against Coinbase had reportedly been filed at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) last summer. Responding to such concerns, the company said it was addressing the problems by hiring more personnel and working to reduce response times, among other actions.

As part of Coinbase’s efforts at developing its global market, it has modified its cryptocurrency listing procedure, allowing users to directly suggest or apply for tokens to be listed.