Is Europe ready for the 'Blockchain, DLT & Crypto' Era?
On April 14, during EBC2021 a group of panelists sat down to discuss tech policy, the awareness of blockchain potential in Europe and its central role in transforming our society and economy across all sectors.
“Making Europe Fit for the ‘Blockchain, DLT & Crypto’ Era”. Panel discussion held by EBCvirtual 2021.
May 18, 2021, 5:15 PM CET
- Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) has been a first step to streamline blockchain technology
- The challenge faced by EU member states lies in the implementation of the legislations
- The recipe for success for Europe is to strike the right balance between fostering innovation, financial stability and consumer protection
“DLT brings an opportunity to reduce transaction costs and that benefits not only the financial sector but also the productive economy.” Explains Jörg Kukies, State Secretary at the German Federal Ministry of Finance to initiate the discussion.
When asked about the application of DLT in Europe, the panelists disclose; applications in the financial world are broad, whether it is payments, issuance, clearing or settlement of financial instruments. “We must not forget the industrial companies in Germany such as SAP, Bosch or Daimler, which are working on applications of DLT in a wide variety of sectors”, claims Jörg Kukies, State Secretary at the German Ministry of Finance.
There is a complete tokenization of our fixed income markets, the experts agreed. “We want to bring everything from the issuance, to the trading, to the custody and the settlement on the blockchain”, clarifies Agata Ferreira, Member of the EU Blockchain Observatory and Forum.
“Crypto custody business legislation specifies under which terms and which supervision the crypto custody business will run.” Explains Adam Gagen, Government Affairs at American Express regarding tech policy. “We are receiving an increasing number of applications of those licences”, adds Jörg Kukies, German Ministry of Finance.
Concerning NFT’s opportunities, Jan Ceyssens, Head of Unit European Commission announces “NFTs have been with us for many years already but now we are realizing how many things we can do with them”.
From the top left: Adam Gagen, Jörg Kukies, Jan Ceyssens, Eva Kaili and Agata Ferreira
The challenge faced by EU member states in the coming months will lie in the implementation of the legislation in a controlled environment. The recipe for success in Europe will be to strike the balance between fostering innovation, financial stability and consumer protection.
To wrap up the discussion, Eva Kaili, Member of the Parliament at European Parliament. claims “When it comes to regulation of blockchain, we are a bit late in comparison with other countries. Europe has been working with pilots and initiatives (EBSI, INATBA, EU Observatory…) but because we have 27 borders we need to work twice as much to remove those borders first”.
EBC’s 5th edition panel discussion articulated by Adam Gagen, Government Affairs at American Express; Eva Kaili, member of the European Parliament; Agata Ferreira member of the EU Blockchain Observatory and Forum, Jan Ceyssens Head of Unit European Commission; Jörg Kukies, State Secretary of the German Ministry of Finance.
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