crypto asset

Crypto asset white papers do not need to be approved by BaFin or any other competent authority prior to the launch of the token sale. Nevertheless, BaFin has certain regulatory powers to intervene in the case of MiCAR violations.

Even after the end of the so-called MiCAR grandfathering period, existing institutions still have the option of obtaining a MiCAR license to expand their business to include crypto assets via the notification procedure with relatively little effort. Who is eligible and how does the procedure work?

MiCAR is not supposed to apply to tokens that can be classified as financial instruments within the meaning of MiFID regulation. But to which crypto assets does this exemption apply exactly? ESMA has commented on this. The principle of “in dubio pro MiFID2” applies.

In a few months, all MiCAR provisions will be legally effective. This also includes the new rules on the prevention and prohibition of market abuse and insider trading. But which market participants must comply with the new strict obligations?

ESMA has been tasked with providing guidelines by the end of the year to facilitate the legal assessment of the legal nature of tokens as crypto assets under MiCAR and as financial instruments under MiFID2. ESMA has already published an initial draft of the guidelines.

In the future, anyone wishing to execute orders for crypto assets for clients in the EU will require a MiCAR license to do so. However, MiCAR provides for further regulatory obligations for crypto service providers in addition to the licensing requirement.

Securing the crypto assets of clients is essential for regulated crypto custody providers. Together with the Frankfurt-based xMarkets Consulting FIN LAW publishes a paper on the most important aspects.

As commercial enterprises, crypto custodians are also exposed to the risk of becoming insolvent. But what happens to the safeguarded crypto assets of clients in the event of a crypto custody service provider’s insolvency?

Systematic internalisers act outside of regulated trading venues on the capital markets and are therefore subject to additional supervisory obligations. Is this also true for OTC-traders of crypto assets?

Stablecoins offer a stable alternative in the extremely volatile crypto market. They are therefore suited as an alternative means of payment and moreover to preserve value in the crypto market. But are they also qualified as financial instruments as traditional cryptocurrencies are?

Crypto lending has become a popular way to generate passive income. As a matter of fact, service providers begin to create business models in such settings. But can these service providers be subject to authorization pursuant to German regulatory law?

Most probably the German legislator did not expect the following when introducing crypto assets as financial instruments: On the 9th of June 2021, the small Latin American country of El Salvador passed a new legislation that will declare Bitcoin its unrestricted, domestic legal tender. As of the new legislation will come into effect, payments made […]