In a recent report, the European Parliament looks at cryptocurrencies with a mixture of openness to innovation and uncertainty in how to tackle it.
The EU Parliament regards cryptocurrencies in its current form mostly as a means to increasing efficiency and lowering transaction costs. Similar to the Bitcoin approach of many banks, the underlying Blockchain technology is seen as a means to fulfil the goals of the European Union, like lowering transnational transaction costs. Similar to approach of banks
The report says: “The main opportunities of VCs and DLT in the field of payments relate to reductions in transaction costs and the ease of use while providing for resilience and varying levels of privacy”. Volatility of cryptocurrencies and room for speculative bubbles are concerns raised by the European Parliament.
Many might believe that for the European Parliament anonymity and traceability of cryptocurrencies are no cause for concern. That is not the case. The expectation is that such systems would not offer full anonymity in case of malfeasance. The EU parliament accordingly also takes a balanced point of view on Blockchains and potential criminal abuse and rather ‘… acknowledges the potential of DLT in assisting governments to reduce money laundering, fraud and corruption’. Cross border transactions
One of the key targets of the European Common Market is to ‘tear down walls’ between its member countries. This is laid out in the Schengen Agreement, which allows citizens of states who signed the treaty to travel and live freely within those countries. For years the EU has been trying to bring down roaming fees for telecommunication providers who charge extra fees for calls across country borders. Cryptocurrencies and the Blockchain industry are a way to fulfil that ideal for transnational payments. “Lowering transaction and operational costs for payments and especially cross-border transfer of funds, […]
