Crypto businesses are reportedly asking finance leaders in the European Union to reconsider a law that would require them to collect and share details of transactions involving Bitcoin (BTC) and other digital assets.
Last month, two committees in the EU Parliament voted in favor of a measure that would require crypto exchanges to gather and submit details of customers who use self-hosted digital wallets in a bid to combat illicit transactions.
According to Reuters, crypto firms are now pushing back on the rule. The news agency reports that 46 European crypto industry leaders and organizations sent a letter to 27 EU finance ministers. In this letter, the firms ask to ensure that regulators do not adopt any rules that go beyond those already covered by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and its standards to combat money laundering.
The letter, dated April 13, warns that requiring the disclosure of the transaction details and wallet addresses of crypto holders could put digital asset owners at risk and reduce their privacy and safety.
In response to the Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) regulations package that proposes to regulate crypto issuers and service providers in the EU, the letter also asks that decentralized projects such as decentralized finance (DeFi) be excluded from the framework’s registration requirements
CoinShares CEO Jean-Marie Mognetti, the organizer of the letter, says that Europe’s complex crypto regulations are preventing businesses from growing in the region. Another organizer, DeFi Technologies chief security officer Diana Biggs, comments that the crypto industry could do more in influencing the drafting of new policies.
“There hasn’t been strong enough or coordinated efforts across our industry in Europe.”
Don't Miss a Beat – Subscribe to get email alerts delivered directly to your inboxFeatured Image: Shutterstock/Vectoro/Natalia Siiatovskaia