On Thursday, European lawmakers voted on the MiCA regulation. The results showed 517 in favor, 38 against, and 18 abstaining. The bill is to become the first major in-depth law regarding digital assets.
Additionally, on the same Thursday of April 20th, 2023, the European Parliament held a separate vote about the law of Transfer of Funds regulation, which was also approved by 529, while 29 were against it, and 14 were abstaining. This law will require crypto operators to identify their customers, thus preventing money laundering in the process.
Following the Wednesday debate about providing an operation license for crypto wallet providers and crypto trading and exchanging platforms, as well as for stablecoin providers to have a sufficient amount of assets available, most of the lawmakers openly supported the idea of the operation license and maintaining sufficient reserves.
European Commissioner for Financial Stability, Financial Services, and the Capital Markets Union, Mairead McGuinness tweeted about the vote:
✅ I welcome the European Parliament’s vote today to approve comprehensive EU rules on crypto: a world first.
— Mairead McGuinness (@McGuinnessEU) April 20, 2023
The rules will start applying from next year. We’re protecting consumers and safeguarding financial stability and market integrity. pic.twitter.com/cdn58rb9FA
The European Parliament released a statement, where Stefan Berger, a lawmaker who negotiated the law, talked about how it will bring the European Union “at the forefront of the token economy.” He also said:
"The European crypto-asset industry has regulatory clarity that does not exist in countries like the U.S. The sector that was damaged by the FTX collapse can regain trust.”
The European Securities Market Authority also tweeted about the vote, welcoming it and announcing its intentions to prepare secondary legislation.
3/3 #MiCA requires #ESMA to draft a substantial package of implementing measures that must be developed ahead of MiCA application. ESMA is preparing these measures together with NCAs, #ESAs and @ecb. We will announce in due time our approach to consult external stakeholders. pic.twitter.com/Usna4xcHEU
— ESMA - EU Securities Markets Regulator 🇪🇺 (@ESMAComms) April 20, 2023
"ESMA still warns consumers that investing in crypto assets is a risky endeavor with limited safeguards at this stage."
MiCA was first proposed in 2020 by the European Commission. To become law, the bill had to be approved by both, the EU Council and the parliament. The law will likely come into effect in June, more than a year after the law’s publication in the EU’s official journal.
