The first attempt to state regulation of Bitcoin
On Sunday, March 18, the FinCEN (Financial Crimes Enforcement Network), a division of the United States Treasury Department dealing with the fight against money laundering, terrorist financing and other financial crimes, issued a directive on the application of FinCEN rules to individuals administering, sharing or otherwise using virtual currencies. This document mentions decentralized virtual currencies, that is, in fact, we are talking primarily about Bitcoin.
Under US law, financial institutions must collect information on suspicious transactions and submit it to the federal government. In the case of a decentralized currency, it is very difficult to draw a line between an ordinary user and a financial institution. Each member of the network involved in mining is a currency issuer, in addition, it helps to make transfers within the network. FinCEN recommends that all Bitcoin members who are not engaged in exchanging virtual currency for other currencies or goods be considered to be simple users who are not subject to financial monitoring rules, but exchangers and, probably, shops and sites hosting Bitcoin should be considered financial institutions. .
Only two paragraphs are devoted to decentralized currencies, and many definitions are not yet clear. Given the distributed nature of Bitcoin, almost every member can make exchanges from time to time or sell something for bitcoins. It is not clear where the border is located, and what kind of information exchangers should provide. Especially when you consider that information about all transactions without exception in the network is publicly available. Perhaps, exchangers will soon be forced to collect personal data about all customers.
Meanwhile, the price of Bitcoin broke through the psychological barrier of $ 50 and continues to grow rapidly.
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UPD: The Bitcoin Foundation attorney Patrick Merk just commented on the FinCEN initiative. Here is a translation of the summary of his article:
Under US law, financial institutions must collect information on suspicious transactions and submit it to the federal government. In the case of a decentralized currency, it is very difficult to draw a line between an ordinary user and a financial institution. Each member of the network involved in mining is a currency issuer, in addition, it helps to make transfers within the network. FinCEN recommends that all Bitcoin members who are not engaged in exchanging virtual currency for other currencies or goods be considered to be simple users who are not subject to financial monitoring rules, but exchangers and, probably, shops and sites hosting Bitcoin should be considered financial institutions. .
Only two paragraphs are devoted to decentralized currencies, and many definitions are not yet clear. Given the distributed nature of Bitcoin, almost every member can make exchanges from time to time or sell something for bitcoins. It is not clear where the border is located, and what kind of information exchangers should provide. Especially when you consider that information about all transactions without exception in the network is publicly available. Perhaps, exchangers will soon be forced to collect personal data about all customers.
Meanwhile, the price of Bitcoin broke through the psychological barrier of $ 50 and continues to grow rapidly.
')
UPD: The Bitcoin Foundation attorney Patrick Merk just commented on the FinCEN initiative. Here is a translation of the summary of his article:
“FinCEN’s position on Bitcoin looks like this:
- Anyone can buy or mine bitcoins and exchange their goods or services without having to register with FinCEN as a financial institution.
- If he himself receives money from someone in exchange for bitcoins, then he may be obliged to register with FinCEN.
- If a miner exchanges his bitcoins for money, he must register with FinCEN.
- Everyone who translates Bitcoin on behalf of and on behalf of third parties is required to register with FinCEN.
This scheme significantly extends the Banking Secrecy Law ( BSA ) and the powers of FinCEN, and will be unacceptable for many, if not for the majority of Bitcoin community members. ”
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/173503/
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