Belgian FSMA calls on government to develop cryptocurrency regulation

The Chairman of the Belgian Financial Services and Markets Authority (FSMA) appealed to the governmentDevelop regulation for the cryptocurrency industry as soon as possible.

During Senate Hearings FSMA ChairJean-Paul Servais turned to lawmakers with a proposal to create "a legal framework for the sale, purchase and use of virtual currencies and all financial products associated with them."

Referring to countries such as Thailand, China,Argentina, Ecuador, Bolivia, and Algeria, in which cryptocurrencies are either regulated or banned, he pointed out the regulatory inefficiency on the part of the Belgian authorities of the industry, which is growing at a significant pace.

He referred to conflicts in warnings,issued by the market regulator and the National Bank of Belgium in response to the promotion of the Bitcoin business. The FSMA Chairman noted that more than a thousand crypto assets are currently circulating on the Belgian cryptocurrency market, which in total are valued at more than $ 320 billion. In the absence of regulation, fraudulent activities using these currencies may affect investors.

"Due to the untraceability of Bitcoin andother virtual currencies are very popular in the context of cybercrime: they are common on the darknet because they allow crimes to be committed without leaving a trace,” — noted in the official FSMA resolution cited by Servais.

He also mentioned a growing amountcrypto machines around the world and said that several such devices are also located in Belgium. The resolution provides warnings to economists and Nobel laureates related to the growth of the cryptocurrency economy. The document mentions the Royal Decree of 2014, which prohibits offering retail investors any professional products based on virtual currencies.

“It is urgent to create a legalbasis for these virtual money and related financial products, in particular to protect consumers and counter the use of crypto assets for criminal purposes,” — the resolution says.

Let us remind you that the FSMA of Belgium has been maintaining a list of fraudulent cryptocurrency projects for several years. Last year, the list included 120 sites.

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