Berlin, Germany-based financial technology startup Bitbond announced in a press release sent to CoinReport that it has become the first blockchain-based financial services provider to be licensed by German financial regulator BaFin.

The company connects small business owners who need a loan with investors and uses the bitcoin blockchain for payment processing.

Bitbond, said the release, allows for Individual and institutional investors to invest in several interest rate regions. With the BaFin license, Bitbond is able to be active independently of banks, and also geographically autonomous.

Bitbond founder and CEO Radoslav Albrecht said on the occasion, “With our own BaFin licence that allows us to conduct asset brokerage Bitbond is active independently of banks. This provides us with a significant efficiency advantage. Other Fintech startups normally rent a licence and by that are bound regionally.”

“Our own licence helps us to fulfill our mission which is to make financing and investing globally accessible.

We are proud to be one of the first regulated financial services providers in the entire blockchain space. This creates legal security with investors on our platform and shows, that Germany is a good location for innovative and globally active financial services providers.“

Investors invest in small businesses via Bitbond and get attractive interest rates. The startup, whose users are from over 120 countries, has originated more than 1,400 loans to date.

Most of the platform’s borrowers are online sellers on sites like Amazon or eBay. The company carries out a credit check based on merchants’ revenue data. The borrowers then use the funds for inventory and working capital financing.

BaFin already classified cryptocurrencies like bitcoin back in 2011, making Germany one of the few countries to have a clear regulatory framework for blockchain-based projects and services.

Image via Press section of Bitbond’s website