Upcoming High-Level EU Financial Policy Talks Could Steer Crypto Oversight: Source

Top
European
officials
are
getting
ready
to
enter
talks
in
April
that
industry
insiders
say
could
steer
the
future
direction
of
crypto
oversight,
a
document
seen
by
CoinDesk
reveals.

The
“non-paper,”
an
informal,
unattributed
document
shared
among
EU
institutions
in
closed
negotiations,
indicates
what
will
be
up
for
discussion
in
an
upcoming
April
meeting
of
the
Financial
Services
Committee
(FSC),
which
is
made
up
of
high-level
representatives
from
the
bloc’s
27
states
as
well
as
from
its
executive
arm,
the
European
Commission.

The
FSC,
designed
to
promote
policy
coordination
between
EU
states,
is
seeking
feedback
from
its
members
on
priorities
and
challenges
for
the
next
five
years
in
digital
finance,
sustainable
finance,
competitiveness
of
the
EU
financial
sector
and
economic
security,
according
to
the
paper.
Digital
finance,
which
includes
crypto
assets
and
service
providers
thanks
to

robust
new
laws,
topped
the
list
of
topics
to
be
discussed.

“Such
documents
highlighting
the
priorities
of
the
EU
in
the
financial
services
field
are
very
relevant
to
the
crypto
industry,”
an
industry
member
familiar
with
the
matter
told
CoinDesk.

Under
discussions
on
digital
finance,
the
document
mentions
a
number
of
legislative
packages
that
have
already
passed,
including
the
pivotal
Markets
in
Crypto
Assets
(MiCA)
regulation
that
sets
up
licensing
regimes
for
digital
asset
issuers
and
service
providers
to
operate
across
the
bloc.
It
also
mentions
proposed
packages,
such
as
legislative
plans
for
a
digital
euro,
as
examples
of
putting
the
EU
at
the
“global
forefront.”

“In
this
respect,
the
EU
will
need
to
continue
ensuring
a
proper
application
of
financial
services
rules
and,
if
necessary,
strengthen
its
supervisory
powers,”
the
document
said.

With
the
adoption
of
MiCA
and
the
further
scoping-in
of
crypto
service
providers’
activities
through
various
other
financial
regulations,
such
as
anti-money
laundering
measures,
crypto
is
“now
part
of
the
broader
financial
industry
in
the
EU
and
the
relevant
policy
priorities
in
the
sector,”
the
industry
member
said.

Although
MiCA
in
its
entirety
is
set
to
take
effect
this
December,
changes
can
still
be
made
to
the
package
in
a
second
iteration,
potentially
bringing
into
its
scope
things
such
as
decentralized
finance
(DeFi)
that
were
left
out
of
the
first
framework.

“Proposals
such
as
strengthening
supervisory
powers
can
easily
be
imagined
taking
shape
in
a
way
that
will
also
affect
the
crypto
industry,”
the
crypto
insider
industry
member
added.

The
FSC’s
planned
meeting
will
take
place
on
April
10,
where
the
main
findings
from
the
feedback
will
be
presented,
according
to
the
document.