The reform of the crypto licenses system in Estonia and the Regulation on Markets in Crypto Assets proposal

Abstract

As part of the EU's Digital Finance Strategy, the European Commission's proposed Regulation on Markets in Crypto Assets is currently going through its first readings in the Council. The goals of this regulation include protection of the customers, promoting innovation, unification of the regulation of cryptocurrencies at the EU market, etc. However, in parallel with this normative initiative, Estonia is already mulling the overhaul of its entire system of crypto-licensing. A Danske bank scandal demonstrated weaknesses of the current cryptolicensing and it is now on the Estonian government, as the first EU government to encounter this kind of situation, to try to improve current regulation. In this article, both MiCA and the roots of the potential overhaul of crypto-licensing in Estonia will be analysed.