EU to Designate Bank of Spain, Securities Regulator for Crypto Oversight: Report

The European Union is set to designate the Bank of Spain and the National Securities Market Commission, Spain's stock market regulator known as CNMV, to oversee crypto assets in the country, Cinco Dias reported.

• A draft revision of the EU's proposed regulation of markets in crypto assets, known as "MiCA," designates the two entitities to oversee crypto activity in Spain alongside the European Central Bank, the Spanish financial newspaper reported on Monday, citing a working document it had access to.
• The aim is for the proposed regulation to be ready by the end of 2021 or the beginning of 2022, Cinco Dias said.
• The document also stipulates that businesses offering crypto services in the EU must have a base in the bloc.
• Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) won't be covered by the regulation because, unlike cryptocurrencies, they are not used as a medium of exchange, an indication of how the EU needs to be clear about the definition of crypto assets.
• Banks looking to work with crypto assets would have preference in obtaining authorization, while investment service companies would have to "start from scratch on an application," according to Cinco Dias.

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