The European Securities and Markets Authority issued guideline on initial coin offerings and crypto-assets

At the request from the European Commission in order to set the regulatory framework with regards to ICO and crypto-assets in general, European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published a guideline in which classified crypto-assets and looked at the specific gaps in regulatory framework considering crypto-assets. Crypto-assets are recognized to be in several forms. They can be virtual currency, digital tokens issues trough ICO, or tokens that have attached profit or governments rights. ESMA expressed the concerns about the risk for investors, and emphasized the importance of appropriate safeguards to be set in place. Recognizing that crypto-asset is the new way of digital assets, ESMA looked at the possible existing regulatory framework mainly the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFid). ESMA recognized that assets that cannot be covered by the MiFid, (such as cryptocurrencies) at a minimum needs to have Anti Money Laundering (AML) requirements set on place. The ESMA’s Advice takes a look at possible ways in which noted gaps can be addressed. Read the full report here.