The French Finance minister is trying to encourage other European countries to develop a set of rules as to how Cryptocurrencies are to be regulated and taxed, following France’s parliament passing legislation last week on how intermediaries handle these assets. Known as the “Plan d’action pour la croissance et la transformation des entreprises,” (Pacte) it reportedly enables insurance companies in France to invest in Digital Assets.
France is keen to encourage tech innovation and different types of funding that Digital Assets have been using like Initial Coin Offerings. The French are keen to have some controls and regulations, to ensure that investors are protected from fraudulent activities from firms looking to create Digital Assets, but not to protect investors from losses should they occur.
Regulations vary wildly by country within Europe as there is no pan-European legislation. However, local regulators across Europe are imposing restrictions on platforms that do not have the correct permissions to offer brokerage services. The European Union has previously proposed that firms offering services in the Digital Asset sector be subject to its anti-money laundering and countering terrorist financing regulations.
As more governments understand the transformational impact that Digital Assets are able to have on their economies, we are likely to see more jurisdictions formulating legislation to encouraging the adoption of Digital Assets. The alternative is, that because these assets are Digital, companies will base themselves in countries that are more accommodative.
