Cryptos Need “Do Not Harm” Approach from Regulators
According to the Chairman of the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission Christopher Giancarlo, regulators need to adopt a Do Not Harm approach if the cryptocurrency industry is to flourish. Chairman Giancarlo made this comment during an interview at the Singapore Summit on Friday, September 14.
Early Days of the Internet
Chairman Giancarlo referred to the early days of the internet, which he said was able to develop and mature the way it did exactly because of minimal interference from the government. He stated that he would advise that governments to take the same approach to cryptocurrencies and everything to do with this new industry.
The phrase “Do Not Harm” is used in the medical world, where doctors are taught as medical students to keep the Latin version, Primum non nocere, when treating their patients. Chairman Giancarlo used this phrase in relation to regulating the cryptocurrency industry, thereby highlighting how critical it was to allow the industry to grow properly.
He did, however, make a point of differentiating between the current, short-term approach of the CFTC and other regulators to battle illicit activities in the crypto world, vis-à-vis a long-term approach in terms of policy making for this industry. He said that when it came to manipulation and fraud, the CFTC needed to be strong. However, when it came to policy making, the CFTC needed to be slow, deliberate as well as well-informed.
US Falling Behind in Regulations
There have been concerns that the US is falling behind other countries in creating the right kind of regulatory atmosphere for the cryptocurrency industry. However, Chairman Giancarlo rebutted these concerns by giving examples of what the US is already doing.
He said that the CFTC had led the first every regulated offerings for Bitcoin futures in the world – the Cboe and CME futures contracts in late 2017.
However, he did admit that the pace could be picked up. He gave the example of the Bank of England, the UK’s central bank, which had already announced a new payment system that was Blockchain compatible.
He said that as regulators, they needed to test and understand this new technology before taking the matter to Congress. He said that using subpoenas to extract information from various companies in the Blockchain and cryptocurrency industry was not the right way to go about it.
Chairman Giancarlo stated that for the industry to flourish, cooperation was the best way forward.