A European Commission vice-president has called on EU nations to commit to blockchain technology which he says is moving out of the lab and going mainstream. In a speech centered on digitization, a vice president of the European Commission – the executive arm of the European Union – pinpointed blockchain technology as an area that EU nations ought to be committing to. EC vice-president Andrus...
Wopke Hoekstra, the Dutch Minister of Finance has notified the Senate and House of his plans to take action regarding the regulation of cryptocurrencies, which he claims are expanding and in need of better regulation. In a public letter, Hoekstra said he intends to work with other European nations on this issue, but he acknowledges regulations will take time to develop. Hoekstra noted that the...
The European Commission has confirmed that it is paying attention to concerns about rising electricity consumption for cryptocurrency mining in the European Union, according to European Commissioner Mariya Gabriel, who oversees digital economy and society. According to a notice on the European Parliament website, Gabriel addressed the issue in response to a question posed to the parliament. Power...
A European Union official raised the possibility of outlining new regulatory framework and guidelines for cryptocurrency markets and ICOs across the EU. In a speech delivered yesterday during a roundtable on cryptocurrencies, European Commission vice president Valdis Dombrovskis raised the possibility of introducing a broad EU regulatory framework after determining current guidelines surrounding...
The European Commission - the executive arm of the European Union – is keeping a close eye on bitcoin markets and is reportedly urging EU banking and markets watchdogs to issue risk warnings to investors. In statements at a news conference on Wednesday, European Commission vice president Valdis Dombrovskis expressed a ‘concerned’ take on the volatility in bitcoin prices. The official ...
The European Commission has announced plans to ‘strengthen’ its response to cyber-attacks, including incidents involving cryptocurrency cybercrime. The Commission made this announcement less than a week after EU President Jean-Claude Juncker devoted a portion of his State of the Union Address to confronting the increasing prevalence of cyber-attacks. In this speech, he announced the creation of a...
The European Central Bank (ECB) reaffirmed the need to make sure it follows through on initiatives to ensure regulations do not undermine the development of blockchain or distributed ledger technologies (DLTs) in its Capital Markets Union mid-term review. The bank noted that the Eurosystem, of which it is a part, has a statutory task to support efficient payment and settlement systems. One aspect...
The European Commission (EC) will tender offers for a service contract to establish a European Union (EU) Blockchain Observatory in response to a European Parliament mandate to strengthen technical expertise and regulatory capacity. The project, announced on the EC website, will include an observatory and a forum to gather input on distributed ledger technology and blockchain technology. The goal...