European crypto exchange WhiteBIT has obtained a brokerage license from the National Bank of Georgia, allowing it to offer regulated derivatives in the country through a new legal entity separate from its existing VASP operation.
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The structure splits the business in two. WhiteBIT Georgia, already licensed as a virtual asset service provider, will continue handling spot trading. The newly licensed WhiteBIT Broker will focus on derivatives, including perpetual futures.
Running the two activities under separate licenses allows the higher-risk derivatives business to sit within a distinct regulatory framework.
Georgia as a Crypto Licensing Destination
Georgia has been an active issuer of VASP licenses, with the NBG having also licensed Bybit. According to Chainalysis data, the country ranks among the leading markets for grassroots crypto adoption, which WhiteBIT cites as part of its rationale for adding a derivatives offering there.
The structure also highlights a divergence in how exchanges are approaching the Georgian market. While WhiteBIT has set up separate entities to operate spot and derivatives under distinct licenses, other platforms such as Bybit have focused on VASP-based operations without obtaining a local brokerage license.
In practice, this means derivatives activity may continue to be routed through offshore entities rather than a domestically regulated framework.
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What the Dual-License Model Signals
For exchanges looking to offer both spot and derivatives under a single brand, the WhiteBIT approach illustrates one way to structure the split: separate legal entities, separate licenses, one parent.
The distinction is not just structural. It affects how clients are onboarded and where regulatory responsibility sits, particularly as jurisdictions begin to define rules for derivatives more clearly.
Whether Georgia’s framework matures enough to attract larger institutional flows — or remains primarily a retail and semi-professional market — will determine whether this model scales beyond niche use cases.
