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Regulation

Owning a Bitcoin ATM is about to get a lot harder in Germany

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4 Monaten ago

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In an effort to increase the country’s legal overwatch, Germany now says Bitcoin (BTC) ATMs require regulatory approval before they are allowed to operate.

ATMs that offer assets such as Litecoin and Bitcoin now requires a license from Germany’s financial regulator, BaFin, a Sept. 8 statement from the entity said. 

“Proprietary trading is a financial service and financial commission business is a banking business, for which prior approval from BaFin is required.”

This does not appear so much as a new ruling as it does a clarification of current legal requirements. “Those who set up such crypto machines that do not have permission from BaFin are acting illegally,” the statement read.

Cointelegraph reached out to BaFin for additional details, but received no response as of press time. This article will be updated accordingly should a response come in.

The regulator also explained that property owners, businesses, etc., may be liable for Bitcoin ATM machines set up on their property if those ATMs are unlicensed, regardless of who actually owns the machines.

Many nations have tightened their watch in recent months regarding cryptocurrencies, including the European Union, with its 5th Anti-Money Laundering Directive, also known as 5AMLD.



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Regulation

File comments against new crypto FinCEN rule, Coin Center leader urges

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4 Minuten ago

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Dezember 29, 2020

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With the two-week commentary period winding down, Jerry Brito, executive director of non-profit crypto policy advocate group Coin Center, says comments could make a difference in the ultimate outcome of the self-custodied wallet ruling recently proposed by the U.S. Treasury. 

“Coin Center is working with folks in Congress to get some letters sent to Secretary Mnuchin requesting an extension to the rushed comment period,” Brito said in a Dec. 28 tweet, adding:

“Everyone in the cryptocurrency ecosystem should file a comment with FinCEN explaining how this rule would affect them and pointing out the unintended consequences. Filing a comment really does help.”

With his likely exit from office looming next month, U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin dropped a regulatory proposal on the crypto space on Dec. 18. If passed, the new law would essentially mandate that U.S.-based crypto services must check users’ identities and their respective wallets whenever they withdraw over $3,000 to a self-custodied wallet, or if they move more than $10,000 to another platform.

Rather than the normal 60-day period, the regulatory body only left the crypto industry with a 15-day window for feedback on the proposal. Brito posited feedback from the crypto industry could help the situation by pushing back the deadline.

“Mnuchin wants to get this rule finalized before he leaves office on Jan 20,” Brito tweeted. “But FinCEN is required by law to consider every comment before finalizing the rule,” he added. “If there are a lot of substantive comments filed, they won’t be able to finalize the rule before Jan 20.”

Pushing the proposal’s decision date past Jan. 20 would leave the law undecided until after government leaders change seats. Delaying the proposal through that date would likely lead to a more thought-out legislation, according to Brito.

“Ideally you should write a unique, substantive letter that describes how the rule will affect you or your firm,” he added, pointing toward an example proposed on Twitter by Jake Chervinsky, general counsel for crypto project Compound. Comments need to be in to the Treasury by Jan. 4. Industry folks can also send in shorter remarks via a digital rights entity called Fight for the Future.

U.S. regulatory bodies have ramped up their engagement in the crypto space in 2020, evident in a number of headlines throughout the year.