Crypto regulation in the world: weekly digest #65

The EU

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has published its second consultation package under the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA). The MiCA regulation institutes uniform EU market rules for crypto-assets that are not currently regulated by existing financial services legislation. The second consultation paper seeks feedback on five sets of proposed rules, covering:

• Sustainability indicators for distributed ledgers

• Disclosures of inside information

• Technical requirements for white papers

• Trade transparency measures

• Record-keeping and business continuity requirements for crypto-asset service providers

The proposed rules aim to cover transparency, disclosure, authorization, and supervision of transactions, supporting market integrity and financial stability by regulating public offers of crypto-assets and ensuring consumers are better informed about their associated risks.

ESMA is contemplating record-keeping requirements for crypto-asset service providers to facilitate regulatory oversight and improve accountability within the crypto industry.

Stakeholders are encouraged to provide their feedback to this consultation by December 14, 2023. ESMA will publish a final report on the basis of feedback received and submit the draft technical standards to the European Commission for endorsement by June 30, 2024, at the latest. ESMA will also publish a third consultation package with the remaining 18-month mandates in Q1 of 2024.

Canada

The Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) has issued new guidelines clarifying the treatment of stablecoins in the country. The new guidelines provide rules to exchanges and cryptocurrency issuers on its interim approach to what it calls value-referenced crypto assets, with a particular focus on stablecoins.

The CSA has allowed stablecoins to be traded as long as providers adhere to the provided terms and conditions and reaffirmed its view that stablecoins «may constitute securities and/or derivatives», which Canadian crypto exchanges are prohibited from trading. However, if issuers maintain an appropriate reserve of assets with a qualified custodian and crypto exchanges offering stablecoins make «certain information related to governance, operations, and reserve of assets publicly available», then the CSA could allow those assets to be traded.

The CSA has prohibited trading of Referenced Crypto Assets (commonly referred to as stablecoins) through crypto contracts without the prior written consent of the CSA. The guidelines also prohibit trades in crypto contracts based on proprietary tokens, except with the prior written consent of the CSA and state that any proportion of «illiquid» assets in a collateral is restricted.

Switzerland

The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision is proposing new disclosure requirements for banks holding crypto assets. The proposed rules would force lenders to reveal the size and nature of their unbacked crypto holdings and activities. The move towards disclosure is part of broader efforts to mitigate risks associated with crypto holdings, aligning with a growing recognition of the need for regulatory measures in response to structural shifts in the financial landscape.

At its meeting on Oct. 4-5, the committee looked at the causes behind the failures of Silicon Valley Bank, Signature Bank of New York and First Republic Bank, as well as the near-failure of Credit Suisse, which was bought by its competitor UBS. According to the committee’s report, three structural trends may have indirectly contributed to the banks’ failures. They were the increasing role of nonbank intermediation in recent years, crypto assets concentrated in a small number of banks and the ability of customers to move their funds faster due to increasing digitalization.

The proposed requirements are set to be outlined in a consultation paper that will build upon the capital requirements for digital assets finalized in December.

News from other countries:

• A special parliamentary panel in Kenya has called on the country's information technology regulator to shut down the operations of Worldcoin. The panel's report recommended the suspension of the companies' physical presence in Kenya until there is a legal framework for regulation of virtual assets and virtual services providers.

• Gary Wong, the co-founder and former Chief Technology Officer of FTX, testified in court on October 6, 2023, that he built special privileges to Alameda Research into FTX's code, which allowed Alameda to have «unlimited withdrawals». Because of these special privileges, Alameda had a $65 billion line of credit.

• The National Bank of Georgia has started its Digital Lari pilot to test the CBDC system technology capabilities and potential application areas through the set of use cases.

We continue to highlight the news of the world of crypto regulation worldwide. Please stay with us!