AFM Chairman Laura van Geest said that despite the loyal European rules for the regulation of cryptocurrencies, the Dutch regulator is not going to soften its attitude towards digital assets. Geest noted that they are difficult to understand and are often used for fraud and market manipulation. However, a complete ban on cryptocurrencies is hard to imagine, Geest said.
AFM estimates that the number of crypto asset holders in the Netherlands is less than 2 million people, and most of them invest less than 1,000 euros in cryptocurrencies. Guest added that the traditional financial sector of the Netherlands is not strongly connected to the cryptocurrency space. However, the MiCA bill does not regulate digital assets as strictly as compared to the standards for existing financial products.
“Should we relax our oversight of the industry just to be able to compete with other countries? Persons applying to AFM for a license come to us trusting in our solid image. And we do not want to ruin our reputation, even if cryptocurrency companies go to other European jurisdictions,” the AFM chairman insists.
In January, the Dutch Central Bank fined the Coinbase cryptocurrency exchange $3.6 million for violating registration rules, and at the end of last year, the central bank urged local traders to refrain from trading on the KuCoin platform, which does not have a license to operate in the Netherlands.
Source: Bits
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