Tag: mica

Coinbase Gains Licence to Operate as Virtual Asset Services Provider in France

US-based crypto exchange Coinbase has successfully acquired a licence to operate as a virtual asset service provider (VASP) in France. This also means that Coinbase is now a registered entity with Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF), the French financial markets authority. While Binance has amassed approval internationally outside US, Coinbase appears to be following the same trajectory amid increasing scrutiny from the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

The third-largest crypto firm by trading volume globally, Coinbase can now offer retail, institutional, and ecosystem products service options in France.

Furthermore, this fresh registration also opens doors for Coinbase to extend custody service for digital assets along with facilitating their buying and selling deals as well, said the exchange in a blog post.

“We’re focused on bringing the benefits of crypto to the world. Achieving VASP status in France allows us to continue to grow globally in the best possible way, onboarding the next 1 billion people into crypto while ensuring consumer’s assets are secure and that compliance is prioritised. France has a thriving Web3 ecosystem,” said Daniel Seifert, Vice President and Regional Managing Director, EMEA at Coinbase.

Earlier in May this year, France invited crypto players looking to set their businesses outside of the US. At the time, this invitation had come just a day after European Union (EU) gave its final approval to MiCA — a comprehensive set of regulations that have been curated to uniformly govern the digital assets sector in all of the EU regions.

Coinbase has especially mentioned that the clarity which the MiCA laws bring to the crypto sector in the EU has been of great help growing for its business there.

“The recent adoption of MiCA by European Union policymakers represents a pivotal moment for cryptocurrencies in the region. The regulatory clarity MiCA provides to the industry is hugely welcome,” the Coinbase blog noted.

Affiliate links may be automatically generated – see our ethics statement for details.

Check out our Latest News and Follow us at Facebook

Original Source

Bitcoin and Ether Are Not Securities, Says Belgium’s Financial Regulatory Agency FSMA

Belgium’s financial regulator, the Financial Services and Markets Authority (FSMA), has clarified its position on the status of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ether, stating that crypto assets without an issuer are issued solely by computer code, do not constitute securities. The Belgian government’s position is that cryptocurrencies are more similar to commodities, and thus should not be subject to the same regulations as securities. The clarification comes amid an increase in demands for answers as to how Belgium’s existing financial laws and regulations apply to digital assets, according to the FSMA.

“If there is no issuer, as in cases where instruments are created by a computer code and this is not done in execution of an agreement between issuer and investor (for example, Bitcoin or Ether), then in principle the Prospectus Regulation, the Prospectus Law and the MiFID rules of conduct do not apply,” the FSMA provided the rationale in a report released on November 22.

Furthermore, the Authority also stated that, “Nevertheless, if the instruments have a payment or exchange function, other regulations may apply to the instruments or the persons who provide certain services relating to those instruments.”

In addition, FSMA stressed that their stepwise plan is technology-agnostic, implying that it makes no difference whether digital assets exist and are supported via blockchain or by more conventional ways.

The FSMA originally developed the report in July 2022 in order to respond to commonly asked questions from Belgian digital asset issuers and service providers.

The European Parliament’s Markets in Crypto Assets Regulation (MiCA) is anticipated to go into force at the beginning of 2024, and FSMA claimed that the stepwise plan will serve as a guide until then.

The ruling provides much-needed guidance on how digital assets will be treated under Belgian law. It is hoped that this ruling will paved the way for greater clarity and certainty in other jurisdictions when it comes to the regulatory treatment of digital assets.

Affiliate links may be automatically generated – see our ethics statement for details.

Check out our Latest News and Follow us at Facebook

Original Source

MiCA Approved: All 27 EU States May Soon Create One Crypto Framework

Different regions around the world, either in clusters or individually, are working on binding the majorly independent crypto sector into legal frameworks in order to make the space safe for investors. In a fresh development, the European Parliament Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs (ECON) has approved the MiCA legislation. First proposed in September 2020, the MiCA draft aims to create a uniform legal crypto framework for all of the 27 EU states.

After two years of consideration and deliberation, ECON has finally approved the MiCA proposal. Stefan Berger, the member of ECON has confirmed the development on Twitter.

The tuning and execution of the crypto policies could go into effect starting in 2024.

“It is important to ensure that the [European] Union’s financial services legislation is fit for the digital age, and contributes to a future-ready economy that works for the people, including by enabling the use of innovative technologies,” MiCA has said.

The Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) framework largely revolves around consumer protection as well as prevention of market manipulation and financial crimes in the crypto sector.

In March this year, the ECON had refreshed the MiCA bill with adding a ‘minimum environmental sustainability standard’ for cryptocurrencies to adhere to.

While the MiCA crypto laws are ready to go into effect, other organisations are also working to develop general laws to eradicate the risk factor from the digital assets sector.

The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, or OECD, is planning to present a taxation framework around the crypto sector to the members of the G20 nations in the coming days.

Over the next months, the OECD will be taking forward work on the legal and operational instruments to facilitate the international exchange of information collected basis the CARF.

Several nations are also working on formulating laws around the crypto space to safeguard its investor community.

India, for instance, recently called for a global support to regulate crypto.

Indian finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman told the parliament on July 18, that the RBI favours a ban on cryptocurrencies.

The development came in the backdrop of tax laws around virtual digital assets went live in India, slashing trade volumes on Indian exchanges. At this point, India still awaits its laws on the crypto sector and Sitharaman has called for a global consensus.

Affiliate links may be automatically generated – see our ethics statement for details.



Check out our Latest News and Follow us at Facebook

Original Source

EU’s Landmark Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation Gets European Council’s Green Light

The European Union has reached an agreement on the Markets in Crypto Assets Regulation (MiCA) framework that spells out how the region should approach the crypto sector. Officials from countries in the bloc signed the framework text into law without any further deliberation, the Council of European Union (EU) said in a statement released on October 5. MiCA is a culmination of political outlines set out in June seeking to have a comprehensive crypto legislative text covering the region. The framework is guided by the goal of protecting consumers and fighting crypto-related crimes like money laundering.

MiCA sets out to bring the issuance of cryptocurrencies under the wing of institutional regulation and establishes a first-time regime for crypto-asset service providers across the EU’s member states. The regulations also seek to impose restrictions on Dollar-denominated stablecoins like USDT and USDC in a bid to promote more Euro-based stablecoins. Wording related to the stablecoin regulations was amended last month, but the harsh restrictions were later added back after some French officials raised concerns about preserving the euro’s sovereignty.

The next step towards formal adoption of the legislation comes on October 10, when the European Parliament’s economic affairs committee will also vote on the proposal.

Then, after translating the text into the EU’s more than 20 official languages, the file is projected to be adopted into the EU’s Official Journal to formalise its enforcement. MiCA includes a 12-18 month adaptation period to prepare for the new laws set in place.

It is worth noting that the European Council isn’t the only regulatory body keeping close tabs on stablecoins and the broader cryptocurrency space this year. The White House also made its biggest move yet in regards to regulating the nascent sector last month, releasing the first framework for regulating crypto assets in the US.

Published after President Biden signed an executive order on “Ensuring Responsible Development of Digital Assets”, the paper outlines how the US government is thinking about crypto regulation, calling on agencies like the Treasury and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to continue monitoring the space over the coming months.

Cryptocurrency is an unregulated digital currency, not a legal tender and subject to market risks. The information provided in the article is not intended to be and does not constitute financial advice, trading advice or any other advice or recommendation of any sort offered or endorsed by NDTV. NDTV shall not be responsible for any loss arising from any investment based on any perceived recommendation, forecast or any other information contained in the article.

Affiliate links may be automatically generated – see our ethics statement for details.

Check out our Latest News and Follow us at Facebook

Original Source

Exit mobile version