Coinbase said in a blog post on 26 January that the ‘Coinbase Exchange’“provides a reliable and secure platform for bitcoin trading that is backed by investors such as the New York Stock Exchange”.
One state regulator, California's Department of Business Oversight (DBO), said that it had not give its approval to the company's exchange.
"Numerous press accounts about Coinbase’s … launch of Coinbase Exchange erroneously reported the exchange has received regulatory approval from the State of California," said DBO commissioner Jan Lynn Owen. "The California Department of Business Oversight has not decided whether to regulate virtual currency transactions, or the businesses that arrange such transactions, under the state’s Money Transmission Act."
Coinbase said it believed the new exchange will “bring stability and trust to the exchange space”.
The move followed an earlier announcement that internet entrepreneurs Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, the twins who reached a settlement with Facebook after claiming that the idea for the company was partly theirs, are planning the launch of a regulated bitcoin exchange for US customers named ‘Gemini’.
According to the New York Times (NYT), the Winklevoss twins have hired engineers from top hedge funds, enlisted a bank and engaged regulators with the aim of opening Gemini “in the coming months”. Tyler Winklevoss told the NYT: “Right now we have to build the infrastructure. You have to walk before you run.”
“The twins have a personal interest in seeing Bitcoin succeed,” according to the NYT. “They amassed a small fortune of bitcoins, starting in 2012, which has declined in value recently. They also have been working with regulators since 2013 to create the first exchange-traded fund holding bitcoins, for which they are awaiting approval.”
The Bank of England suggested last year that digital currencies do not serve the same functions as other money (11-page / 163KB PDF) but could be said to do so in future.
Editor's note 28.1.15: This story previously suggested that Coinbase was approved in 24 jurisdictions. It has been edited to remove that suggestion and include the clarification from one state-level regulator that it had not approved the exchange.
