MoonPay Secures Coveted New York BitLicense
MoonPay joins a short list of firms cleared to operate in the nation’s most tightly regulated crypto market
Welcome to the Wednesday edition of the Crypto In America newsletter!
What you’ll read: MoonPay secures approval to operate in New York, Congress holds hearings on the updated crypto market structure bill, and a look at this week’s top headlines.
Exclusive — MoonPay has officially secured its BitLicense and Money Transmitter Licenses from the New York State Department of Financial Services, enabling the company to serve customers directly in all 50 states.
The green light from New York’s top financial regulator marks a major milestone for the crypto payments firm, placing it among a short list of heavy-hitting BitLicense holders, including PayPal, Coinbase, Robinhood, and Circle.
Widely considered the most rigorous state regulator in the U.S., New York’s licensing process is known for its high bar on compliance, cybersecurity, and financial controls. The BitLicense remains one of the toughest regulatory approvals to obtain in crypto. In 2024, only two firms — Anchorage Digital and Cumberland — were granted licenses, matching the total from 2023, when eToro and Coin Cafe received approval.
The multi-month application process includes extensive reviews of a firm’s compliance, cybersecurity, AML policies, and financial health, and many crypto companies have opted to avoid operating in New York altogether due to its regulatory hurdles.
“With the approval of our New York BitLicense and Money Transmitter Licenses, MoonPay now holds the golden regulatory stack for crypto in the U.S., allowing us to directly serve customers in every single state without gaps in coverage,” said Ivan Soto-Wright, MoonPay co-founder and CEO. “As a U.S.-founded company with a headquarters in New York City, we’re immensely proud of this milestone and look forward to our continued work with regulators nationwide to make crypto accessible to everyone.”
The announcement follows the recent opening of MoonPay’s new headquarters in New York City and comes on the heels of what the company says was its strongest financial year in history.
House Committees Hold Hearings on Updated Crypto Market Structure Bill
The House Financial Services and Agriculture Committees will hold separate hearings today on the newly introduced Digital Asset Market Clarity (CLARITY) Act of 2025, which was unveiled last Thursday.
The bill is an updated version of last Congress’s FIT21 bill and maintains the division of oversight between the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, while introducing changes to definitions, registration pathways, and DeFi provisions.
The Financial Services Committee, chaired by Representative French Hill (R-AR), will hear from several notable witnesses, including former SEC Commissioner Elad Roisman, former CFTC Chairs Rostin Behnam and Timothy Massad, Uniswap Labs Chief Legal Officer Katherine Minarik, and Vivek Raman, founder of blockchain firm Etherealize.
On the Agriculture Committee side, witnesses include Aptos Labs CEO Avery Ching, former SEC Commissioner Michael Piwowar, and legal experts Chelsea Pizzola and Ryne Miller.
At a high level, the CLARITY Act creates a provisional registration system for crypto exchanges, brokers, and dealers, replacing the old “notice of intent” process from FIT21. Firms in this stage must follow rules on disclosure, record-keeping, and membership until fully registered with the CFTC.
The text also updates key definitions to better define so-called “digital commodities” and expands restrictions on insiders, with limits on token sales easing as blockchains mature. It also broadens DeFi protections, exempting developers and validators who don’t hold customer funds from registration, and clearly states that some digital assets sold through investment contracts are not securities.
Today's hearings will set the stage for a potential markup of the bill in the House Financial Services Committee next Tuesday.
Midweek Recap
ICYMI. Here are some of the biggest stories so far this week:
The Senate Agriculture Committee has scheduled a nomination hearing for CFTC Chair nominee Brian Quintenz next Tuesday at 3:00 PM EST.
President Trump's social media platform Truth Social has filed for a Bitcoin spot ETF that would list on the New York Stock Exchange.
Magic Eden announced a partnership with the team behind President Trump’s meme coin, $TRUMP, to launch a wallet that will support trading of the token and other digital assets. Shortly after the announcement, Trump’s sons Eric and Don Jr. publicly stated they were not involved in the deal and that it was made without the knowledge of anyone at the Trump Organization, which is also connected to the meme coin.
Senate Republicans are negotiating behind closed doors with Democrats on more than 60 proposed amendments to the GENIUS Act. If a deal is reached, the stablecoin bill could make it to the Senate floor by the end of the week. If not, procedural hurdles are likely to slow progress and push final passage into next week.
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Love to see it
Thanks for the witness lists.