Latest news with #ESMA
Time of India
6 hours ago
- General
- Time of India
TTD urges contract staff to avoid strikes, warns of action under ESMA
Visakhapatnam: Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams ( TTD ), in an official statement issued on Wednesday, stated that contract employees providing services to devotees of Lord Venkateswara will face appropriate action if they boycott duties or stage protests. Contract employees have been advised to raise their concerns with their respective departmental heads and resolve issues amicably. "Employees in departments such as sanitation and health are rendering crucial services and have been urged not to engage in actions that cause inconvenience to devotees. The Essential Services Maintenance Act (ESMA), which prohibits disruptions to essential services, is currently in force and must be strictly followed at TTD," the statement said. The organisation emphasised that boycotting duties in a globally recognised spiritual institution is inappropriate. It further added that if employees violate rules and initiate strikes, ESMA provisions will be enforced. In addition to staff from the SLSMPC organisation, contract employees and workers from various societies are employed within TTD. Should they boycott their duties, alternative measures will be taken under the ESMA provisions, the statement added.
Coin Geek
3 days ago
- Business
- Coin Geek
EU clarifies legality of shared order books
Homepage > News > Business > EU clarifies legality of shared order books Getting your Trinity Audio player ready... A shared order book involving non-EU licensed exchanges would be a breach of Markets in Crypto Assets Regulation (MiCA) rules, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has confirmed. The insight comes from ESMA's series of Q&As aimed at demystifying MiCA, which governs the provision of digital asset services to EU citizens. Though MiCA was agreed upon and officially entered into force in 2023, the full suite of rules it institutes only began coming into force at the end of 2024. As such, ESMA has been publishing Q&As on aspects of the rules and how they apply in practice. Last week, ESMA published an answer that asked about the legality of the shared order book model under MiCA, particularly where the co-sharer is a non-EU trading platform. A shared order book contrasts with the typical model where each exchange keeps its own order book. If you place a bid on one exchange, you'll only be matched with a seller on that exchange, while sellers' offerings will only be available to users of the exchange they choose to list on. Under a shared order book model, orders are propagated to multiple exchanges at once. One of the specific advantages of a shared order book is increased liquidity. Market participants are also more likely to be given a true view of the market for a particular asset as more exchanges are working off the same order book. A shared order book might also be more tamper-proof and resistant to manipulation than a siloed order book may otherwise be. Answering the specific question of whether a shared order book involving a non-EU licensed entity, the ESMA is clear that this would be non-compliant: 'No, this model would be in breach of the authorization requirements under Article 59 of MiCA and would constitute the unauthorized provision of the crypto-asset service of operation of a trading platform for cryptoassets in the Union by the unauthorized entities whose platform(s) share the order book with the EU-authorized CASP.' This makes sense under MiCA. If entities providing digital asset services (known under MiCA as the 'crypto-asset service provider' (CASP) must be registered and licensed under MiCA, then a non-licensed, non-EU company would be breaching MiCA by providing 'crypto-asset' services in the EU without authorization. That, of course, says nothing about shared order books involving only EU-registered platforms. The ESMA's explanation says that its answer should not be taken as an assessment of whether other types of shared order books are compliant. However, provided all parties to the order book are MiCA-compliant, there would presumably be no conflict with MiCA rules. That's just as well: it's an exciting time for digital assets, particularly because the more legal clarity is provided to the industry, the more companies have been willing to experiment with new business models using digital assets, particularly blockchain technology. Blockchain enthusiasts will almost certainly read this promise of a less centralized, tamper-proof order book and begin thinking about how it might be served by digital ledger technology. What if the shared order book was not entrusted to one managing exchange or intermediary but was run on the blockchain? After all, if the benefits of a shared order book are resistance to manipulation and access to multiple streams of data at the same time, it seems foolish not to take the extra step of ensuring that this order book runs on truly decentralized technology. In BSV, this is already a reality. Ordinal Lock is a sCrypt Bitcoin script that allows a seller to list their blockchain-based asset—BSV or anything else—and have that asset locked behind a script that will only release the token upon paying the seller a fixed amount of BSV to a user-defined address. Everything else handles itself: this simple script essentially allows the entire blockchain to function as an order book. Every bid, every sale, and every exchange of BSV is public and auditable, effectively serving as an open order book viewable by anyone. It's a good thing MiCA has laid down such concretely defined rules of the road for the provision of this service. Anyone wanting to use Ordinal Lock can do so compliantly within the EU, as long as they register with a national authority as MiCA requires. Watch: Reggie Middleton on DeFi, booms/busts & crypto regulation title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen="">
Reuters
23-06-2025
- Business
- Reuters
ESMA head says EU lacks unified view on regulator's expanded powers
PARIS, June 23 (Reuters) - Efforts to grant the European Securities and Markets Authority greater supervisory powers face resistance from some EU members, its chair Verena Ross told Reuters, underscoring the challenges in unifying Europe's fragmented capital markets. "It's clear that when it comes to supervision and also some of the other measures, there's not a unified view that is definitely the way to go," said ESMA's Ross. "It's quite hard to predict where we will come out," she said in an interview in Paris, while remaining confident about broad support for the EU's package of measures to harmonize financial markets. The European Commission's Savings and Investment Union (SIU) package is the latest iteration of plans to deepen capital markets across Europe, which have been discussed for a decade, but which have made little progress. Announced in March, the SIU seeks to use trillions of euros in private savings held in bank accounts to fund technological and industrial development. As part of this initiative, ESMA could gain powers to directly oversee large cross-border financial firms, including crypto companies. Currently, Paris-based ESMA's direct oversight is limited to rating agencies and central counterparties. While EU leaders have voiced support for strengthening ESMA, progress has been slow due to key EU members' reluctance to give up control of their national financial rules. The head of France's financial regulator told Bloomberg, opens new tab in March that she would be willing to relinquish some national authority, while Luxembourg's prime minister wrote in the Financial Times, opens new tab "a decentralised European supervisory system leverages national authorities' expertise and avoids unnecessary bureaucracy." The rollout of the EU's landmark crypto regulation, MiCA, has raised concerns about inconsistent approaches among national regulators and whether they can effectively supervise complex cross-border financial firms. France's financial regulator last month warned that ESMA's lack of direct authority could lead to a "regulatory race to the bottom". Regulators across the bloc are divided over the speed and rigour of other countries' approvals. Ross acknowledged that individual countries were moving at different speeds on MiCA due to varying levels of pre-existing crypto regulation. But Ross added that "some have argued that rather than having 27 national supervisors responsible, let's just make ESMA responsible for it," a move that would make supervision more effective. ESMA has also been warning about excessive leverage, opens new tab in parts of fund management, some of which remains opaque. The regulator plans to collect information from market participants to address any lack of transparency. The regulator welcomed comparisons between ESMA and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) but pointed out key differences. "I always find it very flattering if people talk about the European SEC. I personally have not used this term," Ross said. "We are not the U.S. - Europe is different, and we are talking here about natural steps to potentially move some of the direct supervision responsibility to the EU level, but in a very narrow and selected way."
Irish Examiner
16-06-2025
- Business
- Irish Examiner
Crypto firm which switched HQ from Ireland to Malta poised to secure EU licence
Two of the world's largest cryptocurrency companies are poised to secure licences granting them access to operate across the European Union, as a rift grows among regulators over the speed and rigour of some countries' approvals, according to sources familiar with the matter. Under the EU's new Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation, which came into force earlier this year, member states can issue licences that allow crypto companies to operate throughout the 27-nation bloc, but some have raised concerns in closed-door meetings about the speed with which licences are being granted, two people familiar with those discussions said, asking not to be named because of the sensitivity of the matter. At stake is the oversight of the multi-trillion-dollar crypto industry, which regulators have long warned could facilitate fraud, market instability, and illicit financial flows if it is not properly supervised. MiCA aims to bring crypto under the same regulatory umbrella as traditional finance, but some fear that uneven enforcement could undermine its goals. Gemini, a crypto trading platform founded by billionaire twins Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, is on the verge of receiving a licence to operate from Malta, the smallest country in the European Union, two people said. This follows Malta's earlier approvals of OKX and granted within weeks of the new regime's introduction. Gemini launched Ireland as its European base, to much fanfare, in 2023, but in January 2025 moved its European operations from Ireland to Malta. The Winklevoss twins famously sued Facebook's Mark Zuckerburg accusing him of stealing their idea. Mr Zuckerburg countersued and the twins eventually dropped their lawsuit after agreeing a settlement believed to be in the region of €50m. The pace of Malta's approvals has drawn scrutiny from other national regulators, who meet under the umbrella of the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA). France's AMF has publicly warned that ESMA's lack of direct authority could lead to a "regulatory race to the bottom". Another senior regulatory official, who did not wish to be identified, said that they were concerned about accepting licences granted in countries where regulators had fewer staff, citing Malta as one example. ESMA has scrutinized Malta's licensing process, with a report due to be circulated in the near future, said one of those people. A spokesperson for the Malta Financial Services Authority said it had granted four crypto licences so far and was able to move fast due to its past experience, adding that "expedited processing" was due to its "in-depth understanding acquired over these years". It said its local money laundering standards were strict. ESMA declined to comment. OKX said its application was "rigorous" and that compliance was a priority. The regulatory debate has intensified with expectations that Luxembourg will soon grant a licence to Coinbase, the first US crypto-focused company to join the S&P 500, one of the people said. While the application has been in progress for several months, one person pointed to the relatively modest size of Coinbase's planned operation in Luxembourg. A Coinbase spokesperson did not comment on its application but said it employed 200 in Europe and that it invested in staff to ensure operations were safe. The spokesperson said Luxembourg was a "high-bar, well respected global financial centre" and that Coinbase would hire more than 20 people there by the end of the year. Luxembourg's financial watchdog declined to comment. One person familiar with Luxembourg's thinking dismissed any suggestion that the country was lax and said some critics were rather motivated by self interest in a race to attract crypto firms. Coinbase's anticipated approval is seen as a setback for Ireland, where relations with the crypto industry have cooled. In 2023, Central Bank Governor Gabriel Makhlouf compared crypto to a Ponzi scheme, warning that 'most of the time when you gamble, you're actually losing'. The global cryptocurrency market is currently valued at roughly €2.6tn but it has seen crises, such as the collapse and fraud of top US exchange FTX in 2022. The European Union has long had to contend with divergence between its members. The dispute is unfolding as European politicians consider granting greater powers to regulator ESMA. While the European Union is united as a trading bloc and writes much regulation centrally in Brussels, countries vie with each other to attract international businesses. ESMA head Verena Ross has also pushed publicly for more powers to oversee crypto, although one person familiar with discussions among EU politicians said several countries were sceptical.
The Star
13-06-2025
- Business
- The Star
Exclusive-Crypto giants set for EU green light amid growing regulatory rift, sources say
PARIS/FRANKFURT (Reuters) -Two of the world's largest cryptocurrency companies are poised to secure licences granting them access to operate across the European Union, as a rift grows among regulators over the speed and rigour of some countries' approvals, according to sources familiar with the matter. Under the EU's new Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation, which came into force earlier this year, member states can issue licences that allow crypto companies to operate throughout the 27-nation bloc, but some have raised concerns in closed-door meetings about the speed with which licences are being granted, two people familiar with those discussions said, asking not to be named because of the sensitivity of the matter. At stake is the oversight of the multi-trillion-dollar crypto industry, which regulators have long warned could facilitate fraud, market instability and illicit financial flows if it is not properly supervised. MiCA aims to bring crypto under the same regulatory umbrella as traditional finance, but some fear that uneven enforcement could undermine its goals. Gemini, a crypto trading platform founded by billionaire twins Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, is on the verge of receiving a licence to operate from Malta, the smallest country in the European Union, two people said. This follows Malta's earlier approvals of OKX and granted within weeks of the new regime's introduction. The pace of Malta's approvals has drawn scrutiny from other national regulators, who meet under the umbrella of the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA). France's AMF has publicly warned that ESMA's lack of direct authority could lead to a "regulatory race to the bottom". Another senior regulatory official, who did not wish to be identified, said that they were concerned about accepting licences granted in countries where regulators had fewer staff, citing Malta as one example. ESMA has scrutinized Malta's licensing process, with a report due to be circulated in the near future, said one of those people. A spokesperson for the Malta Financial Services Authority said it had granted four crypto licences so far and was able to move fast due to its past experience, adding that "expedited processing" was due to its "in-depth understanding acquired over these years". It said its local money laundering standards were strict. ESMA declined to comment. OKX said its application was "rigorous" and that compliance was a priority. SELF INTEREST? The regulatory debate has intensified with expectations that Luxembourg will soon grant a licence to Coinbase, the first U.S. crypto-focused company to join the S&P 500, one of the people said. While the application has been in progress for several months, one person pointed to the relatively modest size of Coinbase's planned operation in Luxembourg. A Coinbase spokesperson did not comment on its application but said it employed 200 in Europe and that it invested in staff to ensure operations were safe. The spokesperson said Luxembourg was a "high-bar, well respected global financial centre" and that Coinbase would hire more than 20 people there by the end of the year. Luxembourg's financial watchdog declined to comment. One person familiar with Luxembourg's thinking dismissed any suggestion that the country was lax and said some critics were rather motivated by self interest in a race to attract crypto firms. Coinbase's anticipated approval is seen as a setback for Ireland, where relations with the crypto industry have cooled. In 2023, Central Bank Governor Gabriel Makhlouf compared crypto to a Ponzi scheme, warning that 'most of the time when you gamble, you're actually losing.' The global cryptocurrency market is currently valued at roughly $3.3 trillion but it has seen crises, such as the collapse and fraud of top U.S. exchange FTX in 2022. The European Union has long had to contend with divergence between its members. The dispute is unfolding as European politicians consider granting greater powers to regulator ESMA. While the European Union is united as a trading bloc and writes much regulation centrally in Brussels, countries vie with each other to attract international businesses. ESMA head Verena Ross has also pushed publicly for more powers to oversee crypto, although one person familiar with discussions among EU politicians said several countries were sceptical. (Reporting by Elizabeth Howcroft in Paris and John O'Donnell in Frankfurt, additional reporting by Hannah Lang in New York; Editing by Elisa Martinuzzi and Louise Heavens)
