Cryptocurrency Regulatory Measures Expected To Take Effect After EU Parliament Vote
The past few years have been quite instrumental for the growth of cryptocurrencies. The industry has been experiencing a lot of positive development and this has translated into huge gains for shareholders in the market. For the first time, a number of government and state institutions around the world are taking a keen interest in cryptos. The latest governmental entity to express their interest in regulating cryptocurrencies is the European Parliament.
Recent news indicates that this parliament is edging closer and closer to making regulations of the industry formal. In the last few days of December 2017, the parliament came into several agreements that were aimed at preventing the possible uses of cryptocurrencies for illegal activities. Recently, the parliament followed up on those agreements by taking a vote in support of the changes.
The voting was overwhelmingly in support of the 2017 agreements. The details of the meeting were covered in a recent release by the parliament. One of the key issues that the rules touch on is the apparent anonymity that characterizes crypto transactions. The rules indicate that all entities that wish to engage in digital financial transactions will have to be registered and have formal processes like customer verification as part of the transaction process. The rules thus effectively cover exchanges, wallet providers, and cryptocurrency platforms.
The recent release details several measures that were agreed upon. The most crucial part of it is the timeline of enforcement. Officially, the release states that all the contents of the agreement will become effective 3 days upon its publication. The publication of the contents into the Official Journal of the European Union will be the signal to the national governments of the EU states to take action. The EU states will be expected to adopt the regulations into their national laws over the course of 18 months.
According to Krisjanis Karins, who is a member of the EU parliament, the nature of crime in the EU is yet to change. There is a tendency by criminals thus to use all the available unregulated channels to launder money and do illegal activities like financing terrorism. These activities are in turn a cause for concern security-wise for EU citizens. Karins reckoned that tightening regulations would be the quickest and most efficient way of dealing with such crimes that threaten security.
The status of the cryptocurrency market has indeed given regulatory authorities the jitters for a long time. Cryptotraderpros.com recently reported on the benefits of addressing the questions of legality in the crypto business.
Judith Sargentini, another member of the parliament indicated that the huge amounts of money lost as a result of illegal activity would be crucial in building essential infrastructure in countries in the EU. She thus stated that the new laws are not just great for the governments but for the people in general.
The agreements of December 2017 were not just about regulation. The agreements also touched on possible penalties for law offenders who would contradict the accepted resolutions. Culprits of money laundering were particularly targeted with a range of penalties. There was immediate support for the agreement within the parliament and pundits claimed that the new regulations would prevent organized crime in the EU.