About: Bitcoin
El Salvador leads the world into cryptocurrency, adopting bitcoin as legal tender
El Salvador became the first country in the world to adopt bitcoin as legal tender, a real-world experiment proponents say will lower commission costs for billions of dollars sent home from abroad but which critics warned may fuel money laundering.
The real reason we need a digital euro
The ECB will decide this summer whether to continue its plans for digitalizing the euro. With bankers pushing back, the major advantage of a digital euro has gained little attention, writes Igor Pejic.
Big euro economies push for strong cryptocurrency rules
The finance ministers of France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Spain called on the European Commission to include “strong rules” in its upcoming cryptocurrency proposal, in particular for global digital tokens like Facebook’s Libra.
LEAK: EU to create ‘superbody’ of watchdogs to oversee digital currencies
The EU will set up a new college of supervisors, including national and European authorities, to oversee “significant” digital currencies including Facebook’s Libra, according to the European Commission’s cryptocurrency draft proposal seen by EURACTIV.
Cryptoasset investors exposed to substantial risks, two EU reports find
Cryptoassets are dangerously unregulated and may give rise to criminal activities, according to two recent assessments published by the European Banking Authority (EBA) and the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA).
Europe moves towards a common approach to regulate cryptoassets
European decision-makers and regulators are progressing towards an EU approach for dealing with cryptoassets, digital assets that use cryptography such as Bitcoin and represent a booming market still viewed with concern by financial supervisors.
Europe postpones response to cryptocurrencies to end of year
The European Commission will assess whether new rules are needed against the “substantial speculation” of digital currencies, Commission vice-president Valdis Dombrovskis said on Monday (26 February).
How Iceland became the Bitcoin miner’s paradise
Iceland is the first country to use more electricity on mining crypto-curriencies than on its households – thanks in part to its magma-fuelled power plants. EURACTIV's partner The Guardian reports.
Cryptocurrencies facing ‘pricing bubble’, EU watchdogs warn
Virtual currencies such as bitcoin have shown clear signs of a pricing bubble and consumers could lose all their money, the European Union's banking, securities and insurance watchdogs said on Monday.
EU seeks to urgently counter threat of bitcoin bubble bursting
The EU's top official for the euro on Wednesday (20 December) pressed European regulators to urgently update financial rules in order to face bitcoin's dizzying volatility, after the crypto-currency leapt from $1,000 to $20,000 in under a year.
EU agrees clampdown on bitcoin platforms to tackle money laundering
European Union states and legislators agreed on Friday (15 December) on stricter rules to prevent money laundering and terrorism financing on exchange platforms for bitcoin and other virtual currencies, the EU said in a statement.
Bitcoin and darknet, European dealers’ toolkit
The dismantling of online drug platforms last summer has highlighted the primary role of e-commerce for Europe’s drug trade. EURACTIV France reports.
Is blockchain about to disrupt the electricity sector?
While EU lawmakers are picking over proposals intended to drag Europe’s electricity sector into a 21st century dominated by intermittent renewable power and decentralised generation, others are already contemplating ways in which new digital technologies might shake things up even more.
Darknet guru: New technology can help build European identity
Modern technology could shore up the European project, boost transparency and help governments collect taxes. Author Jamie Bartlett told EURACTIV.com that the EU should become the great technological innovator but warned that politicians simply aren’t prepared for massive changes ahead.
Russia opens the door to cryptocurrencies
The benefits of blockchain are attractive to Russia’s financial system, writes Antonia Colibasanu.
Anti-establishment wave to help push blockchain into real world in 2017
A wave of anti-establishment sentiment sweeping the Western world is likely to help push blockchain – the technology that gave birth to the renegade digital currency Bitcoin – out of cyberspace and into the real world in 2017.
Five member states want EU-wide laws on encryption
Five EU countries said they want the European Commission to propose legislation that would make it easier for police to crack through encryption technology.
Commission champions ‘laissez-faire’ in first response to FinTech revolution
The digital revolution in the financial sector will get a helping hand from EU regulators later this year when the European Commission tables new proposals for retail financing, with a clear objective: let the revolution flourish.
National Front calls for ban on Bitcoin
The National Front wants to preserve cash and ban Bitcoin, which it sees as an unsafe form of payment. The EU has yet to legislate on the subject. EURACTIV France reports.
Bank chief: The end of cash could happen within a decade
Cash could become history within a decade, thanks to new financial instruments, including virtual currencies, some of the world's leading bankers said during the World Economic Forum on Wednesday (20 January).
EU chills French push for new rules against terrorism financing
France’s effort to intensify the fight against terrorism financing is expected to find a more cautious response from EU institutions and member states at a meeting of EU finance ministers on Friday (15 January).
Hands off! The next generation of the Internet is here
Blockchain, the technology behind Bitcoin, is expected to take our digital environment to the next level. While the risks involved are growing in parallel with its development, regulatory responses are not a priority for lawmakers.
EU’s highest court exempts Bitcoins from VAT
In a long-awaited ruling, the EU Court of Justice said on Thursday (22 October) that exchanging traditional currency for the digital currency bitcoin online should be exempt from consumption taxes just like other transactions of traditional currency.