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11/07/24
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Governor of the Bank of Italy Reveals Plan to Release Cryptocurrency Guidelines
On July 9, the governor of the central bank of Italy Fabio Panetta revealed that the apex bank is about to release guidelines regarding the way to apply incoming EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) “in the coming days”.
In the words of Panetta, the aim of the guidelines will be to facilitate an effective application of the MiCA regulation and ensure that those who hold certain cryptos are protected.
Panetta spoke to the Italian Banking Association noting that there are two main categories highlighted in MICA, considered to be meeting the requirements for payments, including asset-reference tokens (ARTs) and electronic money tokens (EMTs).
The Bank of Italy has discovered that only EMTs can “fully perform the means of payment function while preserving the public’s trust,” according to the governor. The value of an EMT is linked to a single fiat currency like a USD-backed stablecoin, while the value of an ART is pegged to one or more assets like the gold-backed token PAX Gold (PAXG).
Panetta said BTC and ETH are example of “unbacked crypto-assets,” with claims that they do not “have no intrinsic value” and “are in effect akin to a gamble.” He noted that cryptocurrency investors are focused on selling their assets when prices rally and they may use them to “dodge tax rules or the regulations in place to counter money laundering and terrorist financing.”
“Clearly, they do not possess the characteristics that make them suited to perform the three inherent functions of money: a means of payment, store of value and unit of account,” said Panetta.
A few weeks ago, a report revealed plans by the government of Italy to increase surveillance on cryptocurrency markets towards ensuring compliance with MiCA.
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