Better protection for buyers of crypto-assets

What changes?

Do you trade in crypto-assets? The European Commission has introduced a regulation to regulate the crypto market. This is the Markets in Crypto Assets Regulation (MiCAR). The regulation covers crypto-assets that currently are not regulated by existing financial services legislation.

As a result, there will be new rules to regulate the market in crypto-assets:

• You may only provide crypto-assets in the European Union with a CASP licence.
• Providers of crypto-assets will not be allowed to sell products that are too high-risk or complex, and they cannot deliberately mislead buyers.
• If providers advertise it must be clear who the sender of the advertisement is.
• If a platform is hacked and cryptos are stolen, providers must compensate their customers.
• Crypto service providers are not allowed to use their clients’ funds to trade with on their accounts
• Crypto -assets and crypto companies will be under the supervision of the Dutch Authority for Financial Markets (AFM).

The new rules for the regulation of the crypto-assets market are set out in the national implementing law of this European regulation.

For whom?

• providers of crypto-assets

When?

It is expected the Implementing law of the MiCA Regulation enters into force on 30 December 2024.

Please note: The effective date of this measure is not yet final. Entry into force is subject to its passing through the upper and lower houses of parliament or proclamation of the Order in Council (Algemene Maatregel van Bestuur, AMvB) or ministerial decree and publication in the Staatsblad or Staatscourant (Government Gazette, in Dutch).