Irish politician calls for stronger digital currency regulations in EU

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An Irish politician has called for stronger measures to be taken to regulate digital currency in the European Union, in a move designed to provide greater legal certainty for businesses and more robust protections for consumers.

Chris MacManus, a Sinn Fein Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for Midland Northwest, said digital currency laws should be tightened across the bloc, submitting some 45 amendments to the EU.

According to MacManus, his proposals would enforce a more formal process for launching and promoting digital currency assets.

“Under my proposals, all new and existing crypto-assets will require authorisation by a ‘competent authority’ like the Central Bank. Currently, currency founders simply have to deposit a white paper that outlines the cryptos’ purpose and technology, with no scrutiny whatsoever. These white papers, under my amendments, would also require a lot more detail and transparency.”

MacManus also said state authorities should be required to consider the environmental impact of digital currency projects before giving their approval, in a move aimed squarely at block reward mining.

His recommendations also include provision for stablecoins and their issuers, as well as virtual asset service providers (VASPs). In particular, stablecoin issuers would be required to hold equivalent cash reserves to the total value of their stablecoin in circulation, to allow coin holders the option of redemption for fiat.

MacManus said the measures would make the digital currency market more secure and more transparent, while making it harder for digital currency assets to be used by criminals or in illegal transactions.

The measures come as the European Commission continues to consider its Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) regulations, which would introduce a common standard for digital currency regulation throughout the region.

The regulations continue to be subject to significant debate across Europe, as lawmakers, industry and other stakeholders grapple with the challenges of regulating digital currency assets.

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