Luzius Meisser, the CEO of the Swiss Bitcoin company, spoke on Monday during CoinDesk TV’s “All About Bitcoin” program. It was an opportunity for him to give his impressions on the approach that the EU will take towards crypto. He indicated that despite everything, the European authorities will not choose to ban cryptos outright.
The EU would like to separate crypto from the traditional financial system
While the US presidency bemoans the lack of regulation on crypto, the EU is tightening restrictions on the sector. Indeed, recently EU lawmakers decided to impose strict restrictions on banks getting into crypto. They voted for a project stipulating that they must have in their own capital as many funds in euros as in cryptos.
For the leader of Bitcoin Suisse, the EU seeks to build a firewall between crypto and the traditional financial system. However, it is not going to outright ban the use of cryptos on the continent. Meisser explained that such an approach would only be “not compatible with the liberal political order“. He clarified that looking to contain the crypto would be the best method.
Luzius Meisser argues that this would keep the new industry alive within the European Union. He has declared : “Their intention is to protect the traditional financial system from the toxicity of the crypto economy.“. “But, maybe it also helps protect cryptos from traditional financial systems with all their flaws and mistakes.“, he added.
The consequences that the new restrictions could have
The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision has set rules similar to the crypto restrictions the EU imposes on banks. Meisser said the rules of the industry’s international standards body were rather “extremes» vis-à-vis the cryptos. He stated that the various restrictions could limit the exposure of banks to crypto.
The leader of Bitcoin Suisse spoke about the 1% to 2% rule. He explained : “This means that for every bitcoin you hold for a client, you must have one more bitcoin in equity.“. “This basically prohibits banking with bitcoins“, he underlined.
Certainly, EU lawmakers will not ban the use of crypto. But, they cannot take a laissez-faire approach either, according to the president of Bitcoin Suisse. Meisser thinks lawmakers won’t want to let crypto grow on its own, at the risk of becoming “themselves.”obsolete“.
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