Maltese Parliament Passes Three Blockchain Bills into Law

The Maltese Parliament has passed three bills into law that establish a regulatory framework for the country’s blockchain sector, Malta Today reports.

Just last week, the Parliament “unanimously voted” to approve these bills in its second reading. The bills include the Malta Digital Innovation Authority Act, the Innovative Technological Arrangement and Services Act, and the Virtual Financial Asset Act.

Silvio Schembri, the Parliamentary Secretary for Financial Services, Digital Economy and Innovation, shared an update on Twitter about the new development, which he believes will make Malta “the first world jurisdiction to provide legal certainty to this space.”

“The 3 Bills that will regulate DLT [distributed ledger technology] have been approved by Parliament and enacted into law,” the tweet reads.

The blockchain bills are designed to make Malta a hotspot for blockchain and cryptocurrency companies. Schembri believes that they will attract new businesses and put investors’ minds to rest.

While celebrating the new milestone in an update shared on Twitter, Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said that the new laws will make Malta a “global hub for market leaders” in the blockchain industry.

According to Muscat, the new legislation proves that Malta is the first country globally with a “holistic legislative framework” for regulating the blockchain space. Blockchain companies now have the legal tools necessary to operate in a forward-looking, regulated economy, the prime minister added.

With the new blockchain laws, Malta has distinguished itself as among the world’s most friendly blockchain jurisdictions and has taken yet another step in becoming the world’s blockchain island.

The Maltese government has been working through different avenues to apply blockchain technology to public service. Earlier this year, it partnered with Omnitude to improve the transport system using DLT. In the past, the government has conducted a feasibility study using blockchain technology to record academic certificates.

Many crypto and blockchain businesses have already set up shop in Malta, as well. The most notable ones include OKEx, Binance and BitPay.