Share this article
Austria Planning New Regulations for Cryptocurrency, ICOs
Austria is drawing up cryptocurrency regulations, using as a model existing rules for the trading of gold and derivatives.
Updated Sep 13, 2021, 7:36 a.m. Published Feb 23, 2018, 7:00 p.m.
Make us preferred on Google
Austria has joined the list of countries planning to regulate cryptocurrencies and will use as a model existing rules for the trading of gold and derivatives.
The government's central concern is curbing the use of cryptocurrencies for money laundering, Bloomberg reports. Likewise, it wishes to extend oversight measures for traditional financial products to crypto assets.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Don't miss another story.Subscribe to the Crypto Daybook Americas Newsletter today. See all newsletters
"Cryptocurrencies are significantly gaining importance in the fight against money laundering and terrorism financing," Finance Minister Hartwig Loeger was quoted as saying. As a result, he went on to say, "We need more trust and security."
Loeger outlined several measures the government plans to implement, including requiring cryptocurrency market participants to identify all trading parties and to disclose trades of €10,000 ($12,300) or more to the government's financial intelligence unit.
The regulation will also cover initial coin offerings (ICOs), Loeger said. The government will apply existing rules regarding market manipulation, insider trading and front-running, and organizers will be required to submit "digital prospectuses" to the country's Financial Market Authority (FMA).
The finance minister's statements come on the heels of a report that the Austrian government is seeking suspects in an alleged bitcoin scam by a company called Optioment, which may have resulted in investor losses of up to $115 million.
Loeger also suggested that the European Union should implement cryptocurrency regulation. This may well come to fruition as the European Commission announced Thursday that top central bank and market supervision figures in addition to unidentified "market players" will meet next week to discuss the matter.
Austrian parliament image via Shutterstock
More For You
Pudgy Penguins is building a multi-vertical consumer IP platform — combining phygital products, games, NFTs and PENGU to monetize culture at scale.
What to know:
Pudgy Penguins is emerging as one of the strongest NFT-native brands of this cycle, shifting from speculative “digital luxury goods” into a multi-vertical consumer IP platform. Its strategy is to acquire users through mainstream channels first; toys, retail partnerships and viral media, then onboard them into Web3 through games, NFTs and the PENGU token.
The ecosystem now spans phygital products (> $13M retail sales and >1M units sold), games and experiences (Pudgy Party surpassed 500k downloads in two weeks), and a widely distributed token (airdropped to 6M+ wallets). While the market is currently pricing Pudgy at a premium relative to traditional IP peers, sustained success depends on execution across retail expansion, gaming adoption and deeper token utility.
More For You
Bitcoin trader warns of downside as gold rally continues to pull focus from BTC
Crypto prices stabilized after an early-week dip, but bitcoin continued to trail gold and silver as macro trades dominated after the Fed’s policy hold.
What to know:
- Bitcoin hovered around $88,000 after the Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged, with trading subdued despite modest gains in ether, solana, BNB and dogecoin.
- A sharp rebound in the U.S. dollar and continued strength in commodities, especially record-high gold and elevated silver and copper, have overshadowed crypto markets.
- Analysts say bitcoin is trading more like a high-beta risk asset than a macro hedge, stuck in a bearish consolidation about 30 percent below its October peak and struggling to break above key resistance near $89,000.
Top Stories
