Legislators in Colombia are once again striving to govern digital currencies, presenting a 16-part proposal designed to safeguard individuals and stimulate financial backing within the nation’s expanding cryptocurrency industry.
As per regional news, the suggested law encompasses a broad spectrum of cryptocurrency-related matters, encompassing supervision, promotional guidelines, taxation, education, and actions to counter money laundering and terrorist funding.
A crucial element of the proposal involves establishing a licensing framework for Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs). Cryptocurrency enterprises seeking to function within Colombia would be obligated to secure this permit, akin to requirements in jurisdictions such as Hong Kong, Canada, Singapore, and the UAE. The aim is to ensure their adherence to regulations.
Senators and Representatives presented the proposal to Congress on Toncoin (TON) Value Forecast for March 26th 2nd, following a prior unsuccessful endeavor the previous year.
A primary justification for regulation centers on the absence of security and the potential for misuse of digital assets. In the absence of a well-defined structure, cryptocurrency firms function in a nebulous zone, generating ambiguity and dangers for users. A regulatory structure would furnish much-needed transparency for exchanges and other cryptocurrency ventures.
The objective is to establish explicit regulations that cultivate a dependable and appealing investment climate for digital currencies, while also offering protections for this nascent sector.
The proposal incorporates a VASP licensing system for cryptocurrency enterprises.
It’s approximated that approximately 5 million Colombians participate in cryptocurrency trading, with total transactions reaching $6.7 billion in 2024 alone.
Nevertheless, the periodical highlighted that numerous people have suffered from deceit and pyramid schemes, whereas others have exploited the unsupervised digital currency environment to sanitize funds. Colombia’s monetary watchdog, the Financial Superintendency of Colombia, has allegedly been executing various digital currency experimental initiatives since 2021. However, these initiatives have not yet yielded a “lucid regulatory infrastructure.”