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EU legislators remove the term ”ban” from a draught of cryptocurrency regulations
Stefan Berger, the bill's primary sponsor, previously stated that the passage could be "misinterpreted."
A section of a pending bill in the European Union has been scrapped that would have made it illegal for crypto services to deal in coins based on proof-of-work—the consensus mechanism Bitcoin and Ethereum use to "mine" new currency and secure their networks.
The Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) bill, introduced by a coalition led by Stefan Berger, was scheduled for a vote in the European Parliament on Monday, February 28. However, it was postponed late last week after many members of parliament objected to a paragraph regarding proof of work.
Berger confirmed today that the bill's paragraph 61 (9c) has been removed entirely, though the vote has yet to be rescheduled.
MiCA has the potential to reshape European cryptocurrency adoption. It was first proposed in September 2020 and would require the European Central Bank to "establish uniform rules for crypto-asset service providers and issuers at the EU level." In a nutshell, it would create a regulatory framework for cryptocurrency across the European Union, something the United States and other countries are still working on.
However, one passage in particular piqued the interest of cryptocurrency users. It required that no crypto assets be created, sold, or traded within the EU by 2025 if they used "environmentally unsustainable consensus mechanisms." Crypto assets would have to meet "minimum environmental sustainability standards" to avoid a ban.
Opponents of the bill argued that it would effectively prohibit Bitcoin and Ethereum mining in Europe, as well as make it impossible for custodians to hold proof-of-work coins for clients.
Berger claims that was not the intention of the lawmakers. He stated in announcing the postponement of the vote last Friday that "individual passages of the draught report can be misinterpreted and understood as a POW ban."
However, environmental concerns are weighing on Europe, whose member countries are attempting to meet the Paris Agreement's climate targets. Finanspektionen, Sweden's financial regulator, recommended a ban on mining Bitcoin and other proof-of-work coins last year, arguing that the energy expenditure was not justified by the benefits.
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By Crypto PiratesStefan Berger, the bill's primary sponsor, previously stated that the passage could be "misinterpreted."
A section of a pending bill in the European Union has been scrapped that would have made it illegal for crypto services to deal in coins based on proof-of-work—the consensus mechanism Bitcoin and Ethereum use to "mine" new currency and secure their networks.
The Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) bill, introduced by a coalition led by Stefan Berger, was scheduled for a vote in the European Parliament on Monday, February 28. However, it was postponed late last week after many members of parliament objected to a paragraph regarding proof of work.
Berger confirmed today that the bill's paragraph 61 (9c) has been removed entirely, though the vote has yet to be rescheduled.
MiCA has the potential to reshape European cryptocurrency adoption. It was first proposed in September 2020 and would require the European Central Bank to "establish uniform rules for crypto-asset service providers and issuers at the EU level." In a nutshell, it would create a regulatory framework for cryptocurrency across the European Union, something the United States and other countries are still working on.
However, one passage in particular piqued the interest of cryptocurrency users. It required that no crypto assets be created, sold, or traded within the EU by 2025 if they used "environmentally unsustainable consensus mechanisms." Crypto assets would have to meet "minimum environmental sustainability standards" to avoid a ban.
Opponents of the bill argued that it would effectively prohibit Bitcoin and Ethereum mining in Europe, as well as make it impossible for custodians to hold proof-of-work coins for clients.
Berger claims that was not the intention of the lawmakers. He stated in announcing the postponement of the vote last Friday that "individual passages of the draught report can be misinterpreted and understood as a POW ban."
However, environmental concerns are weighing on Europe, whose member countries are attempting to meet the Paris Agreement's climate targets. Finanspektionen, Sweden's financial regulator, recommended a ban on mining Bitcoin and other proof-of-work coins last year, arguing that the energy expenditure was not justified by the benefits.
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