Regulatory clarity helps foster mass adoption and legitimization of cryptocurrency as whole. In this week's news roundup, we look at some of the latest regulatory developments that have made the headlines recently.
Signs of progress
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Jay Clayton was widely reported as saying he agrees that Ethereum is not a securit– º and neither are similar cryptocurrencies, in response to a letter from coincenter.
Chairman Jay Clayton has also been talking about the possibility of a Bitcoin ETF. Clayton clarified that he is not against Bitcoin as an asset, but he is highly cautious of the introduction of an ETF due to manipulation and custody concerns.
Meanwhile, the Thai Securities and Exchange Commission has approved the countries first ICO portal – an entity that conducts due diligence on ICOs, ensuring they meet standards.
In Canadian, the government has proposed a regulatory framework for crypto exchanges. The government says it welcomes input from the FinTech community to help improve the framework. Canada appears to be taking a cautious but progressive stance towards regulating the crypto sector.
The CEO of the Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC) also released a statement this week, in which he said:
The emergence of digital and crypto assets continues to be a growing area of interest forregulators, investors and marketplaces – and, together, securities regulators are taking steps todeepen our understanding of this area. We must adapt to innovation, and provide clarity to the market about how regulatoryrequirements might best be tailored and applied to these unique business models, whilemaintaining investor protection.
World's tallest ICO?
And finally, Emaar Group, the real estate firm that built the tallest building in the world, the Burj Khalifa, is looking to leverage blockchain technology, with plans for an Emaar community token. The token will be built into a referral and loyalty program, and is being built in a partnership with Lykke AG, a cryptocurrency start-up.
