Switzerland Opens Consultation Process For DLT Laws
- Scheduled to end in February 2021, the consultation process will be conducted among cantons, parties and other groups interested in blockchain and DLT.
- The Swiss government amended several existing finance and corporate laws last month to include provisions for blockchain and DLT.
Swiss flag and tourists in the background, admiring the peaks of Monch and Jungfrau mountains on a Mannlichen viewpoint in Bernese Oberland, Switzerland. Shutterstock
The Swiss Federal Department of Finance (FDF) has started a consultation process with the goal of creating better laws for the blockchain and distributed ledger technology (DLT) industry, the agency said in a press release on 19 October.
According to the announcement, the consultation process will be conducted among cantons, parties and any other group interested in blockchain or DLT, and is scheduled to end on 2 February, 2021. The initiative comes as the most recent development in Switzerland’s continued push for blockchain and cryptocurrency adoption.
Last month, the Swiss Parliament unanimously adopted the “Federal Act on the Adaptation of Federal Law to Developments in Distributed Ledger Technology”, which amended several existing finance and corporate laws to include provisions for blockchain and DLT. With Monday’s announcement, the FDF has revealed that the amendments have actually improved the regulatory framework of the country.
By initiating a consultation process for a “blanket ordinance” in the space, the FDF will have an easier time incorporating the amendments into law at the federal ordinance level, which it plans to start doing starting August 2021. The blockchain-friendly attitude Switzerland has had towards crypto and blockchain has attracted many firms to the region, which now has more than 900 blockchain companies, employing over 4,700 people.
With so many companies focusing on blockchain in the area, the Swiss government has focused quite a lot on adoption. Back in September the Swiss canton of Zug, also known as the “Crypto Valley” in the space, allowed its residents to pay their taxes with Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH). Things have progressed so far, that even a government run bank, Basler Kantonalbank, was reported to be looking into the technology, and planning to launch its own crypto services.
- The bill aims to adopt the Nebraska Financial Innovation Act and create digital asset depository institutions.
- The initiative could make Nebraska the second U.S. state to set up a formal charter for crypto-powered bans, the first being Wyoming.
Nebraska flag. Shutterstock
- If passed, the bill will define digital tokens as “assets whose creation and supply aren’t controlled by a central group”.
- A second bill was introduced the same day, which calls for the creation of a working group to evaluate the current digital assets regulatory framework.
- By acquiring the securities house license, Crypto Broker AG has joined the ranks of entities such as SEBA and Sygnum Bank.
- The new license will not only allow the firm to offer its clients tokenized securities, but also hold funds in fiat currency for clients.