Europe to become standard-setter in global crypto market

"Today, we put order in the Wild West of crypto assets and set clear rules for a harmonised market that will provide legal certainty for crypto asset issuers, guarantee equal rights for service providers and ensure high standards for consumers and investors. So far, crypto assets, such as crypto currencies, have been out of the scope of European legislation and too often, divergent laws exist in Member States”, said Stefan Berger MEP, as he reached, on behalf of the European Parliament, an agreement with the representatives of the European Commission and the European Council to set up a European regulatory framework for crypto assets (MiCA), such as Bitcoin.

"The recent fall in the value of digital currencies shows us how highly risky and speculative they are and that it is fundamental to act. This Regulation will help to move crypto markets away from the dodgy backwaters of the internet by applying minimum standards that are similar to other types of financial services. With this new law, the EU is taking the lead in regulating crypto”, explained Markus Ferber MEP, EPP Group Spokesman on Economic Affairs.

"It is true that mining requires energy. On the other hand, industries (e.g. the video games and entertainment industry, data centres, travelling etc) also consume high-energy resources. Should we therefore ban everything and deprive Europe of a source of innovation and potential growth? With MiCA, we are making important steps towards environmental protection while encouraging innovation. We want to create a European crypto innovation hub", said Berger.

"For me as Rapporteur, it was always clear that MiCA mustn't ban proof of work. It is good that Parliament, the Commission and the Council have taken the path of technology openness together. We have agreed that crypto asset providers should in future disclose the energy consumption and environmental impact of assets. The basis for this will be regulatory technical standards (RTS)."  So-called proof of work is a method of verifying and tracking the creation of new cryptocurrency and transactions that occur on a crypto currency blockchain.

Finally, the EPP Group managed to ensure that consumers would be better informed about risks, costs and charges and secure the setting-up of solid supervision in a field that had previously been entirely unregulated.