European Central Bank (ECB) board member Yves Mersch has said that banks should “segregate” their dealings in cryptocurrencies from other activities, Reuters reported May 14. Reuters quotes Mersch as raising concerns over the high volatility of crypto markets, emphasizing that digital tokens “do not qualify as money,” and that their issuers, as well as dealers, exchanges, banks, or clearing houses, should be regulated. Mersch reportedly noted that even at its peak market capitalization in January 2018 – which Mersch mistakenly reports as $432 bln rather than the actual $800 bln – the crypto market is still too small to threaten …

European leaders seem to have finally come to a consensus that the innovative technology underlying crypto-assets “has the potential to improve efficiency and inclusiveness of the financial system and economy more broadly,” as emphasized at the G20 summit in Argentina in March 2018. However, when it comes to regulation, the lack of consensus among global leaders made it impossible to enact broad legislation. Various European representatives pushed for coordinated legislation to restrict cryptocurrencies during the G20 summit with no success. Instead, there was agreement to set a July 2018 deadline for regulatory proposals. The hang-up over regulation may be due …

The European Commission’s (EC) Digital Day 2018 has led to the signing of a Declaration to create a European Blockchain Partnership made of up 22 countries, according to an April 10 European Commission press release. During yesterday’s speech, the EC Vice President called on Europe to become a leader in digital technologies by working on Blockchain innovation as well as artificial intelligence (AI) development. The press release reads that the Partnership will be a “vehicle for cooperation amongst Member States to exchange experience and expertise in technical and regulatory fields and prepare for the launch of EU-wide [Blockchain] applications across …

Nigerians have been warned by the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) against the use of cryptocurrencies because the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) does not recognize them as legitimate currency, local news outlet Business Post Nigeria reported yesterday, March 23. Business Post Nigeria notes that this is not the first warning against cryptocurrencies, as “various government agencies in Nigeria have cautioned citizens on the new form of money.” Adikwu Igoche, an executive at the Research Department at the NDIC, said that digital currencies were not authorized by the CBN and were thus not “insured by the NDIC.” During an interview …

The European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, is set to reveal plans for a joint regulatory effort on fintech, including Blockchain, Reuters reported Monday, March 5. A copy of a draft document seen by the publication, due for release “as soon as this week,” suggests a desire for EU regulators to adopt blanket rules governing issues such as crowdfunding and “[b]lockchain technology standards.” This, Reuters suggests, forms part of a move to end the “patchwork” system of regulations currently in force across member states of the bloc. “An EU framework would offer a European passport, and, at the same time, …

One of the three major questions that the President of the European Central Bank will be answering via a series of videos on Feb. 12, 2018 is about cryptocurrencies and Blockchain. Mario Draghi will respond to the selected questions, whether Bitcoin offers a viable alternative to traditional currencies as well as comment on the ECB's view on its technology, provided they are submitted by Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. Europeans aged between 16 and 35 can also ask questions around three main topics: possibility of a new global economic crisis, cryptocurrencies and Blockchain, Europe’s economic recovery and youth unemployment The session …

The French asset management company TOBAM, with $9 bln under management, has officially announced the creation of the first Bitcoin mutual fund. The goal is for institutional investors to gain access to the cryptocurrency. The company has created the fund as an unregulated alternative investment in order to provide a vehicle for allowing more regulated investors at the institutional level to gain Bitcoin exposure without the regulatory concerns. According to the business development lead, Christophe Roehri: "Direct investment in Bitcoin can be operationally challenging, from dealing with the choice of the platform, to maintaining the proper security measures in terms …

Dr. Pavel Kravchenko is currently an advisor at decentralized platform Decent and co-founder of DistributedLab. He does a great job on raising Bitcoin and Blockchain awareness in Ukraine, giving lectures and organizing conferences and meetups. Pavel also is an organizer and a think-tank of the BIP001 conference, which aims to raise Bitcoin and Blockchain awareness among Ukrainians and establishing bridges between EU, US and Ukrainian markets. Cointelegraph is a media partner for the conference. Our task is to outline the main issues of the Ukrainian crypto market that will be discussed at the conference. Pavel kindly agreed to discuss with …

On October 26, 2015, The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), an organization “created as an economic counterpart to NATO,” held a hearing on disruptive innovation in the financial sector. An unclassified document published as an “Issues Paper” entitled “Refining Regulation To Enable Major Innovations In Financial Market” was prepared by Dr. Sean Ennis, a Senior Economist in the OECD's Competition Division on behalf of the Secretariat (for the 60th meeting of Working Party No. 2) was obtained by Cointelegraph. The topics discussed were peer-to-peer lending, crowdfunding of equity, virtual currencies and innovative payment/currency exchange solutions. The report notes …

Written by Colin Kwan, COO of Magnr/BTC.sx. Colin has over 10 years experience in investment banking, including senior management roles at UBS and Deutsche Bank. Colin also holds an MBA from the Australian Graduate School of Management. Setting the Scene At the time of writing, the Greece debt crisis appears to have been averted, or at the least delayed. A €50 billion bailout package has been offered, if the Greek parliament agrees to implement extensive reforms that have been demanded by the eurozone. Although the risk of a Grexit has been reduced, it has not been eliminated. If the parliament …

The never ending tragedy known as the Eurozone is flirting with disaster and the unknown consequences of what would happen if Greece is ejected by brute force or leaves by sheer will from the EU. Interestingly enough, the first Bitcoin ATM has arrived in Athens just in time. 4 options The clear lesson being learned is the recipe of political and social integration before economic integration makes a terrible meal. A lot of noise and overcomplicated explanations have been put forth as to what will happen. In reality, there are four options left as to how this can play out: …

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) is investigating the use of digital currencies and blockchain technology for investment products, notably financial assets and derivatives. The EU markets watchdog, which is "seeking to understand investment using virtual currency and distributed ledger technology," has issued a call for evidence on Wednesday, to solicit market participants to share their feedbacks and experiences on virtual currency investments. The ESMA, which has been monitoring and analyzing the development of virtual currency investments for the past six months, is looking to understand the wider impact and potential of these technologies beyond their use as a …