It was only a matter of time until the European Union introduced new regulations related to bitcoin and cryptocurrencies. A new report published by the European Parliament goes to show cryptocurrencies cannot be anonymous. It is unclear what this means for bitcoin, although it is possible this will bode well for other currencies focusing on privacy and anonymity.
No Anonymity When Using Cryptocurrency
Governments have been concerned over the use of cryptocurrencies for money laundering and tax evasion purposes for quite some time now. Although there is no solid evidence to back up these claims by any means, some new regulations have been proposed by the European Parliament. It is nice to see the European parliament acknowledge cryptocurrencies will become increasingly important as more time progresses.
As one would come to expect from a new directive, the goal is to prevent terrorist financing and money laundering through bitcoin and other currencies. Any issuer, administrator, intermediary, and distributor will need to identify suspicious activity right away. Moreover, all of the businesses involving these practices will have to become officially licensed according to existing rules within the European Union.
At the same time, this new proposal means anyone who uses cryptocurrency can no longer remain anonymous. Since using bitcoin has never been subject to anonymity whatsoever, this should not have any big impact on the ecosystem as a whole. Other cryptocurrencies, such as Dash and Monero, however, may see additional scrutiny moving forward. Additionally, this will also change the way bitcoin can be used within Europe is moving forward.
Forcing companies to identify users who rely on cryptocurrency is not entirely unexpected, though. It was only a matter of time until the European Parliament attempted to make bitcoin appear more legitimate. After all, that is exactly what this new directive is trying to facilitate in the long run. Consumers and enterprises are wary of cryptocurrency due to the anonymity aspect. With this new ruling that “problem;” is eradicated as a whole.
While this directive seems to give bitcoin more legitimacy, it remains up to the European Council to adopt or amend it. An amendment will postpone the final verdict on this directive even further, as it needs to be sent back to the European Parliament. for further review. Rest assured it will take at least a few more months until we know what comes of this proposal. In the end, it appears things are evolving in the right direction for bitcoin and cryptocurrencies in Europe, although it remains unclear what will happen exactly.
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