Bermuda
BermudaBermuda wrote a crypto licensing law in 2018 and now has 53 digital asset businesses on its register, from Circle and Coinbase to start-ups.
Key Regulatory Progress
Every law, rule and official guide on crypto in Bermuda: 9 apply today, and the rest show what's coming and how regulators read the rules. Each is explained in plain words and linked to the official original.
Last checked against the originals on 15 Oct 2026.
Core framework
The primary statutes that define crypto assets and who may deal in them.
- In forceApplies today
Digital Asset Business Exemption Order 2023
Exempts the BMA and Government from DABA, and lets rewards programmes, in-game assets, data storage providers, intra-group activity and funds with a licensed manager claim exemption by notifying the BMA and filing an annual declaration.
Read the original - In forceApplies today
Digital Asset Business Amendment Act 2020
Created the Class T licence for pilot and beta testing, with $10,000 minimum net assets and no Bermuda head office requirement, and amended the fee and exemption provisions. In force 11 December 2020.
Read the original - In forceApplies today
Digital Asset Business Act 2018
The core regime: anyone carrying on digital asset business in or from Bermuda needs a BMA licence in Class F, M or T, and must meet minimum criteria including $100,000 of net assets and a Bermuda head office. Assented 25 June 2018, in force 10 September 2018, last amended in 2024.
Read the original - ConsultationDraft out for comment
Consultation Paper: Call for Proposal, Embedded Supervision in the context of Decentralised Finance
Invited proposals for a joint pilot testing whether supervisory requirements can be built into DeFi infrastructure. The BMA lists Chainlink Labs, Hacken, Bluprynt and Apex as participants in the pilot.
Read the original - GuidanceNot binding law
Bermuda Monetary Authority 2025 Annual Report
Reports 50 digital asset businesses supervised during 2025 (22 Class F, 21 Class M and 7 Class T) and $2.6 million of DABA licence fees, and notes a stayed judicial review of certain DABA provisions.
Read the original - GuidanceNot binding law
Bermuda Monetary Authority 2026 Business Plan
FinTech objectives for 2026: finalise licence classes under the Payment Services Act, publish the outcome of the embedded supervision pilots, and propose legislative amendments for tokenised instruments.
Read the original
Exchanges & custody
Licensing, conduct and custody rules for trading platforms and service providers.
- In forceApplies today
Digital Asset Business (Custody of Client Assets) Rules 2025
Require licensees providing custodial wallet services to keep client assets separate from their own, account for them promptly and have client asset controls reviewed annually by a qualified person. In force 12 February 2025.
Read the original - In forceApplies today
Digital Asset Business Amendment Act 2023
Added digital asset lending and repurchase transactions as a licensable activity and set record-keeping rules for Class T licensees. In force 9 June 2023.
Read the original - GuidanceNot binding law
Guidance Note: Digital Asset Business, Guidance for Prospective Applicants for Licensing
Sets out what the BMA expects in a DABA licence application, from the legal vehicle, head office and staffing to outsourcing, insurance, capital and custody. It names SAC, ISAC and trust structures as bankruptcy-remote options firms have used.
Read the original
Stablecoins & payments
Issuance, reserve and redemption rules for fiat-referenced tokens and payment tokens.
- ConsultationDraft out for comment
Consultation Paper: Guidance Note on the Use of Recognised Stablecoins within Bermuda Insurance, Insurance-linked Securities and Investment Fund Structures
Proposed guidance on when funds, limited purpose insurers, ILS funds and intermediaries may use recognised stablecoins: fiat-pegged, backed 1:1 by cash or cash equivalents and redeemable at par by the next business day.
Read the original - ConsultationDraft out for comment
Consultation Paper: Proposed Payment Services Act 2025
Proposes a Payment Services Act to replace the Money Service Business Act 2016, with tiered licence classes. Issuing or redeeming stablecoins would be a payment activity, with exemptions for DABA-licensed firms.
Read the original - GuidanceNot binding law
The Government of Bermuda Announces Plans to be the World's First Fully Onchain National Economy with support from Circle and Coinbase
Announced at Davos: Circle and Coinbase will provide infrastructure to the Government, banks, insurers and businesses, government agencies will pilot stablecoin payments, and merchants could accept USDC payments.
Read the original - GuidanceNot binding law
Digital Asset Business Single Currency Pegged Stablecoins (SCPS) Guidance
Sets the BMA's expectations for licensed stablecoin issuers: segregated, high-quality liquid backing assets at least equal to coins in issue, monthly attestations, a published white paper, stress testing and recovery planning. Published with a stakeholder letter on 3 December 2024.
Read the original
Tokenisation & securities
Security tokens, RWA, funds and ETFs.
- In forceApplies today
Digital Asset Issuance Act 2020
Requires BMA authorisation and, unless an exemption applies, a published issuance document for public offers of digital assets in or from Bermuda; offers to 150 or fewer persons, qualified acquirers or professionals are not public offers but need a placement declaration. Assented 19 March 2020, in force 6 May 2020.
Read the original - ConsultationDraft out for comment
Asset Tokenisation Consultation Paper
Proposes targeted amendments rather than a new regime: one definition of tokenised investments across the investment, fund, DABA and DAIA laws, rules for digital twins and native tokens, and an explicit DAIA exemption for tokenised funds.
Read the original - SupersededReplaced
Companies and Limited Liability Company (Initial Coin Offering) Amendment Act 2018
Bermuda's first token-sale law: ICOs needed the Minister of Finance's consent and an ICO offer document filed with the Registrar. In force 9 July 2018; its ICO provisions were repealed by the Digital Asset Issuance Act 2020.
Read the original
AML & travel rule
Anti-money-laundering obligations and the FATF travel rule.
- GuidanceNot binding law
Annex VIII: Sector-Specific Guidance Notes for Digital Asset Business
Applies Bermuda's AML/ATF regulations and general guidance notes to digital asset businesses, covering customer due diligence, ownership and staff checks, and wire and digital asset transfers.
Read the original
Tax
How gains, income and transactions are taxed.
- In forceApplies today
Corporate Income Tax Act 2023
Imposes a 15% tax on Bermuda entities of multinational groups with revenue of EUR 750 million or more in two of the four prior years, for fiscal years beginning on or after 1 January 2025. Assented 27 December 2023.
Read the original - In forceApplies today
Exempted Undertakings Tax Protection Act 1966
Lets the Minister assure exempted companies, LLCs and partnerships, up to 31 March 2035, that any future tax on profits, income or capital gains will not apply to them. Since 2025 these assurances do not protect against the Corporate Income Tax.
Read the original - GuidanceNot binding law
Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework (CARF)
CITA's page on the OECD crypto reporting standard. It says details of Bermuda's participation, reporting obligations and implementation timelines will be published in due course.
Read the original
Investor protection
Market abuse, disclosure, advertising and retail safeguards.
- In forceApplies today
Digital Asset Business (Client Disclosure) Rules 2018
Require licensees to disclose all material risks before a client's first transaction, and their licence class, fees, insurance cover and whether transfers are irrevocable when agreeing to provide services.
Read the original
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