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FinTech
Bringing regulators and the DLT community together
Regulators cannot effectively oversee the blockchain and cryptocurrency industry without the experts in the DLT community, writes The Hon Albert Isola MP, Gibraltar’s Minister for Digital and Financial Services
Afew months ago, an explanatory memorandum drafted by the European Commission on the regulation of Markets in
Crypto-assets (MiCA) was leaked to the international media.
Subsequently, the regulations were published by the European Commission and the reaction has been mixed among the Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) community. For example, some members of The International Association of Trusted Blockchain Applications (INATBA) have expressed concerns, while agreeing with the stated goals of the regulations. While the European Commission then clarified a
number of concerns surrounding the legislation. The fact that this debate is ongoing, however, is irrefutably important and positive. No stakeholder will be happy with legislative decisions that are made by one side without consultation of the other, but what is most important is that both sides are learning from each other in the process.
The DLT industry is still relatively nascent The importance of such discussions cannot be overlooked, especially in times of crisis. The DLT industry is still relatively nascent, although this year, in particular, has shown its potential for resilience in the face of adverse situations. In Gibraltar, we are immensely lucky to have avoided some of the very worst impacts wrought by the Covid-19 pandemic. DLT exists in a similar vein. The DLT industry cannot only withstand turbulent times. It is built to
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