Malta Taking Steps to Become Blockchain Island
According to the latest news reports, Malta has taken significant steps to coming closer to its target of becoming the Blockchain Island of the world. This week, the lawmakers of the land passed three different bills – all related to cryptocurrency regulations.
With these three bills being passed, Malta will become one of the most important locations for the Cryptocurrency and Blockchain industry.
The World’s First
According to Malta’s Parliamentary Secretary Silvio Schembri, these bills are the first of their kind in the world and have been designed to turn the island state into a Blockchain powerhouse.
The three bills passed are the Virtual Financial Assets Act (VFA), the Malta Digital Innovation Authority Act (MDIA) and the Innovative Technology Arrangements and Services Act.
The Virtual Financial Assets Act deals with the regulation of ICOs, detailed descriptions of the projects as well as ordering new projects and creating whitepapers for them.
The Malta Digital Innovation Authority Act will control the governing body by the same name (MDIA), which will be agency responsible for the development and implementation of Blockchain related regulations. Stephen McCarthy will the CEO of the newly formed MDIA. McCarthy was previously the CEO of Malta’s Housing Authority.
The Innovative Technology Arrangement and Services Act will govern startups as well as other companies that want to use distributed ledger technology.
Blockchain Island – Blockchain Powerhouse
The Island of Malta has become one of the forerunners of the Blockchain industry. The state is already home to some of the world’s most prominent crypto related companies. In fact, Binance and OKEx, the two largest cryptocurrency exchanges in the world in terms of trading volume, have announced their plans to move their operations to Malta.
Companies are looking at being able to conduct transactions such as fiat-to-crypto withdrawals and deposits, something most banks and countries have not allowed, but which Malta said it will make possible through local bank partnerships. This positive attitude is what is attracting the biggest crypto players in the market to the island state.
According to the CEO of Binance, Changpeng Zhao, Malta’s regulatory attitude towards the nascent industry is logical, clear as well as forward thinking. He also stated that dozens of other crypto companies and exchanges are looking at relocating to Malta.
While the reaction in the crypto world towards the passing of these new bills have been largely positive, some critics feel that these legislations may only allow the “big” players to operate in Malta.