Global crypto wallet Abra has enabled the direct purchase and sale of cryptocurrencies for European bank accounts, according to a press-release published by PR Newswire Tuesday, September 4. Abra, which offers 28 cryptocurrencies for consumers worldwide, will now support Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) bank accounts. As the company’s official Twitter states, the launch of in-app European bank purchases of digital currency has already started. Customers can now transfer euros or several other national currencies directly to their wallet which can, in turn, can be converted into the 28 cryptocurrencies offered by Abra including Ethereum (ETH), Litecoin (LTC), and Ripple …

Economic and financial affairs ministers from the European Union’s (E.U.) 28 member states will reportedly hold an informal meeting on the challenges posed by digital assets and the possibility of tightening regulations, Bloomberg reported August 29. According to a draft note seen by Bloomberg, participants will discuss a general lack of transparency and the potential for cryptocurrency to be used for tax evasion, terrorist financing and money laundering at a September 7 meeting in Vienna, Austria. The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has previously warned customers about Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs), citing a lack of investor understanding and problems …

The European Parliament's Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs is working on new crowdfunding regulations that could extend to some initial coin offerings (ICOs), according to a draft report published August 10. Ashley Fox, a British Member of the European Parliament (MEP), proposes bringing some ICOs within the remit of a new draft regulatory framework for crowdfunding that has been in development as of March. The report says that while the draft crowdfunding rules may not provide an outright solution for regulating the ICO space, they represent “a much-needed step” towards introducing appropriate regulatory measures aimed at investor protection. Emphasizing …

Spanish left-wing political coalition Unidos Podemos has called on the state to explore and implement the benefits of blockchain technology, local news agency Europa Press reported August 12. Podemos, formed from left wing parties Podemos, United Left, Equo and others has suggested that the Spanish government establish a subcommittee responsible for studying the potential of blockchain technology as well cryptocurrency regulation. Alberto Montero, the deputy of the political alliance, has reportedly registered the request in the lower house, along with a project plan. The blockchain-focused body would bring together public administrations, state authorities and public officials, as well as industry …

Cryptocurrencies — what are they? Money? Commodities? Securities? Utility tokens? Or something else? Few national governments seem to be in any kind of agreement on this question, and for now, at least, their divisions have given such currencies as Bitcoin and Ethereum a floating, indeterminate status on the global stage. As a result, cryptocurrencies lack a single, definite existence, with some nations treating them as money (e.g., Japan, Germany) and others treating them as an unregulated, speculative asset (e.g., Mexico, Denmark), making them the financial equivalent of Schrödinger's cat. However, as this review of classifications of crypto throughout the world …

Major U.S. cryptocurrency wallet and exchange Coinbase has entered the crypto gift card market, allowing customers in certain countries to exchange coins for brand e-certificates, according to their July 25 blog post. In the post, Coinbase confirmed the new option was made possible through a partnership with UK-based startup WeGift, and will effectively allow cryptocurrency holders to pay for goods and services through brands such as Nike, Tesco, Uber, Google Play, Ticketmaster, and Zalando: “Starting today, Coinbase customers in the EU and Australia are able to instantly spend their cryptocurrency balances on e-gift cards, making us the first trading platform …

Coming every Sunday, the Hodler’s Digest will help you to track every single important news story that happened this week. The best (and worst) quotes, adoption and regulation highlights, leading coins, predictions, and much more — a week on Cointelegraph in one link. Top Stories This Week US Charges 12 Russian Intelligence Officers With Crypto-Funded Election “Interference” The U.S. Department of Justice released an indictment this week that charged twelve Russian nationals with the intention to “interfere” in the 2016 U.S. presidential elections. According to the indictment, Russian officials from the government’s Main Intelligence Directorate mined cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin in …

The EU Fifth Anti-Money Laundering Directive came into force yesterday, July 9, Cointelegraph auf Deutsch reports July 10. Measures within the directive will set a new legal framework for European financial watchdogs to regulate digital currencies in order to protect against money laundering and terrorist financing. As the EU Commission wrote in an accompanying press release, the new rules enact stricter transparency requirements directed at the use of “anonymous payments through prepaid cards” and “virtual currency exchange platforms” for the purposes of money laundering or terrorist financing. The EU Commission writes: “The 5th Anti-Money laundering directive also increases the cooperation …

On July 9, a "Monetary Dialogue" session was held by the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee (ECON) of the European Parliament. It’s a quarterly conference that is directly interlinked with the European Central Bank (ECB): Every three months, the president of the ECB (or, occasionally, another representative) appears before the Committee to report on the state of monetary policy in the union. It is worth noting that the ECB has a complex relationship with cryptocurrencies, with its president declaring last year that it wasn’t “in their powers to prohibit and regulate them.” However, more recently, the ECB has …

The European Banking Authority (EBA) has published a report, which analyzes the opportunities and risks emerging for financial institutions in using distributed ledger technology (DLT). In the report released July 3, the banking regulator analyzes the impact of fintech and DLT on financial institutions, examining two DLT use cases in international trade and so called “digital identity.” The EBA defines “digital identity” as the “information used to represent an entity in an informational system.” The EBA starts with an extensive explanation of the ways DLT can be applied in the field of international trade transactions and streamline the process of …

The European Parliament has told lawmakers not to “ban” or “ignore” cryptocurrencies in a new report released this week, forecasting they “will remains with us for a while.” The report, ‘Virtual currencies and central banks monetary policy: challenges ahead’ commissioned by the Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee, contains a wealth of supportive statements on virtual currencies (‘VCs’). Its publication diversifies the broad EU standpoint on the technology, which continues to include legal projects to monitor residents’ usage and clamp down on anonymity. “Thanks to their technological properties, their global transaction networks are relatively safe, transparent, and fast,” the report’s abstract …

Economic researchers at the Kiel Institute for the World Economy have identified digital currencies issued by a central bank as an opportunity for a more stable financial system, while at the same time rejecting cryptocurrencies, Cointelegraph auf Deutsch reports today, June 27. The Kiel researchers distinguish digital or virtual currencies from cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin in their report published on the 26th of June, which will serve as a guide to the "Monetary Dialogue" in the ECON Committee of the European Parliament. According to the report, cryptocurrencies do not constitute a viable alternative to traditional central bank currencies: “Currently, cryptocurrencies …