Franz Grüter - a member of the Swiss parliament - has filed a motion aimed at reducing the regulatory burden on blockchain startups by limiting the legal definition of 'customer deposit'. The motion was signed by 23 people from all major political parties. Franz Grüter - a member of the Swiss parliament - has submitted a motion aimed at reducing the regulatory burden on blockchain startups, by limiting the legal definition of 'customer deposit'. The motion was signed by 23 people from all major political parties. Grüter commented to Zentralschweiz am Sonntag newspaper that he wants to "prevent the seedlings of a promising new ecosystem from being trampled by the boots of bureaucracy." Switzerland is now well positioned in the bitcoin community with initiatives such as Crypto Valley in the city of Zug, which recently gained international media attention when it decided to accept bitcoin payments. The blockchain startup ecosystem in Switzerland is extremely vibrant, but no cryptocurrency exchange exists there. Currently, companies that handle customer money - whether in francs, bitcoin or any other currency - are very quickly becoming classified as banks, even when their risk profile is fundamentally different from typical banks. It comes with regulatory and capital requirements that are virtually impossible for startups to meet. Luzius Meisser, founder of the Swiss Bitcoin Association comments with the words: "this move sends a strong signal to blockchain startups around the world that the Swiss parliament wants Switzerland to be at the forefront of innovation in financial technology". The website of the parliamentary group Sustainable Digital Development reads: "The Federal Council will be instructed to define the concept of "customer deposit "from Article 1 of the Banking Bill and Article 2 of the Banking Act more concisely, to the extent that risk allows. Financial regulator Finma's current broad interpretation dams innovative blockchain startups whose business models are classified as banking, even when the intent behind the law-namely the protection of depositors-does not require such a classification." In Switzerland, the chambers (the council of the nation and the council of the cantons) only meet four times a year, so a vote on the proposal has not yet been scheduled and may not take place until the fall session at the earliest. If the proposal passes, the federal council will be able to take specific actions, some of which may be voted on again in parliament. In practice, the proposal could have an indirect positive impact right now, by sending a strong signal to Swiss financial markets regulator Finma, which may interpret the current rules less restrictively. As we can see, Switzerland is moving in the right direction, with the regulations coming down to making it easier for bitcoin/blockchain companies to operate. Let's also hope that Poland will move in the same direction by becoming an attractive place for Fintech companies for the benefit of both parties. Photo under Creative Commons license: Flickr.com Tags bitcoin btc law regulations government Switzerland
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