Cryptocurrency industry needs clear rules established on a global basis, Circle's CEO says

• The CEO of one of the prominent crypto startups urges the global regulators to develop a comprehensive regulatory framework. 
• Rules for crypto exchanges can be further expanded to cover digital coins issuance and circulation. 

The countries should establish clear and coordinated regulatory guidelines for the cryptocurrency industry, according to Jeremy Allaire, the CEO of Circle, the startup backed by Goldman Sachs. 

He believes that crypto and blockchain regulatory matters should be addressed by all major economies at the G20 level for the industry to proceed with the development. 

Speaking in the interview with Reuters, Jeremy Allaire explained that the rules and regulations for the cryptocurrency exchanges suggested by the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF) are a good starting point that can be further extended to the issuance of digital coins and other related aspects.

“When it comes to token offerings, how should they be treated? Which token offerings are securities, which are not? The trading venues - are they like spot commodity markets that need to have rules in place around market manipulation?” he said. 

Currently, the regulatory landscape is patchy at best. Some countries like Japan require cryptocurrency exchanges to register and obtain license, while others, like China, preferred to ban them altogether. European countries have taken a lassier-faire approach with a notable exception of Malta, where a comprehensive blockchain and cryptocurrency regulation laws come into force in November.  

The European Securities and Market Authority (ESMA) published  Annual Work Program earlier in October where it announced the plans to spend 1M euro on cryptocurrency industry oversight. However, the agency is focused primarily on investor protection and anti-money laundering procedures. 

Read more about ESMA

Meanwhile, Jeremy Allaire is not the only cryptocurrency industry tycoon, who wants the regulatory authorities to set clear rules. Back in September the industry experts represented by CEOs of such companies as Fidelity, Nasdaq, State Street, Andreessen Horowitz, participated in a roundtable discussions in the US Congress and urged the politicians to deliver a regulatory framework for digital assets and blockchain technologies.

 

 

 

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