France plans to tighten the rules for registering cryptocurrency companies. The measure is described in amendments to the financial legislation.
The measure was backed by a committee of both houses of Parliament. Under the changes, applicants must comply with internal-control rules, cybersecurity standards, and have a system for managing conflicts of interest.
On 24 January, the National Assembly of France was to vote in favour of mandatory licensing of companies linked to digital assets. As an alternative, a replacement of this option with a general registration process accompanied by consumer-protection measures and corporate governance measures was proposed, and that ultimately became the main option.
The document is expected to be approved by the Senate on 16 February and by the National Assembly on 28 February. If supported, the rule would take effect from January 2024.
Currently, crypto companies prefer to register with the French Financial Markets Authority (AMF) rather than obtain a license. In this list, 60 firms are listed.
To obtain a full AMF license, applicants must secure professional liability insurance or maintain minimum capital, establish internal controls, and comply with cybersecurity protocols along with other organizational requirements. So far, none of the firms has managed to meet these criteria.
As reported, the European Parliament postponed the final vote on the comprehensive regulation of crypto-asset markets to April.