Gibraltar To Introduce ‘World’s First’ ICO Regulations
’s government and Gibraltar Financial Services Commission (GFSC) have announced that in the coming weeks they will develop a draft law that will regulate (ICOs) in the British overseas territory, Reuters .
The draft law, aiming to regulate the promotion, sale and distribution of digital tokens on the territory of Gibraltar, will be the first ever set of regulations developed specifically for ICOs, the lawmakers claim.
One of the principal aspects of Gibraltar’s ICO regulations will be the introduction of the concept of “authorized sponsors,” who are supposed to be “responsible for assuring compliance with disclosure and financial crime rules,” said Sian Jones, one of GFSC’s senior advisors.
The draft law will also establish disclosure rules that will require ICO projects to provide “adequate, accurate and balanced information to anyone buying tokens”, the government and Financial Services Commission said to Reuters.
According to Reuters, over $3.7 bln was secured in ICO fundraisers worldwide in 2017, compared to $100 mln in 2016. This rapid expansion of the ICO market is what has reportedly provoked Gibraltarian regulators to take action.
In September 2017, Cointelegraph that with fast increasing numbers of ICOs, the GFSC issued an , warning investors of the “highly risky and speculative” nature of ICO fundraising campaigns.
The parent company of cryptocurrency exchange Bitfinex, iFinex, is suing Wells Fargo over disruption to wire transfers.
Bitfinex: Court Move To ‘Prevent Precedence’
Court documents by the company, along with fellow conversion service Tether.to in San Francisco, relate to the global bank allegedly blocking outgoing wire transfers to the banks servicing them.
“Wells Fargo has suspended U.S. dollar wire transfer operations needed to remit to plaintiffs’ customers U.S. dollars that the customers deposited with plaintiffs to purchase digital currency,” the complaint reads.
It adds that the bank’s actions were “causing imminent and irreparable harm to plaintiffs.”
In additional comments on Reddit, Bitfinex spokesman that the lawsuit was to “prevent precedence” and that if nothing was done, the phenomenon could repeat itself with other cryptocurrency businesses.
He said:
“We’re not going to rollover for action like this. It’s precisely why we have increased our legal department.
“The decision to initiate legal action is because we cannot allow precedence in this industry where clearing houses can disrupt businesses that are by all metrics complying with the rules in place.
“If we allow them to simply flip a switch and disrupt business, then there becomes a precedence in the bitcoin industry beyond just Bitfinex, so we believe it is the appropriate time to take action to prevent precedence.”
Fickle Banks Meet Their Match At Last
The decision to disrupt liquidity flow for the two services could well represent the most severe instance of a bank declining service to cryptocurrency businesses.
Previous instances include Venezuelan exchange Surbitcoin’s due to a banking refusal, while flagship New Zealand exchange bitNZ after operating for six years due to its bank’s sudden decision to cut ties.
Not just exchanges, but entities from across cryptocurrency have felt the effects of banks’ changing whims. UK news resource Coinjournal had its bank account frozen by Barclays in September last year, allegedly over with bitcoin.
Regulations Bite Poloniex in Washington State
Meanwhile further up the West Coast, Washington State is to lose services from another bitcoin exchange, this time Poloniex.
In a to customers, “careful consideration of the Washington State Department of Financial Institutions’ interpretation of its financial services regulations” had resulted in the suspension of service for residents “until further notice.”
Customers affected have two weeks from April 6 to remove funds from their accounts. Before the deadline, they are also prohibited from “opening new margin positions, adding to existing ones, and lending funds.”
Bitfinex itself Washington State for the same reasons back at the beginning of March. Unlike Poloniex, however, the exchange hinted there would be no return, and its users had markedly less time to react.
What do you think about the Wells Fargo case? Let us know in the comments below!
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