ECB President Demands Crypto Regulation In Response To Russia

The ECB President demands crypto regulation in response to Russia’s recent actions and the sanctions imposed on the country after attacking Ukraine as we are reading these past few days in the cryptocurrency news.

Christine Lagarde, the ECB President noted:

“It’s so critically important that MiCA is pushed through as quickly as possible so we have a regulatory framework within which crypto assets can actually be caught.”

The ECB President demands crypto regulation and called on the lawmakers to approve the framework on crypto hitting of prevention of Russia from getting around the economic sanctions. Speaking to the reporters at an informal meeting on fiannce ministers, Lagarde said that the European Central Bank will be implementing the sanctions on Russia proposed by European lawmakers in a response to the country’s invasion of Ukraine. Responding to a question on Russia potentially using crypto to evade the measures, the ECB president urged action on the proposals for a regulatory framework on digital assets:

“Whenever there is a ban or prohibition or a mechanism in place to boycott or prohibit, there are always criminal ways that will try to circumvent the prohibition or the ban. It’s so critically important that MiCA is pushed through as quickly as possible so we have a regulatory framework within which crypto assets can actually be caught.”

The MiCA or Markets in Crypto Assets proposed creating a regulatory framework for the crypto market that will support innovation and will draw the potential crypto assets in a way that will preserve the financial stability and protect investors. Initially introduced to the European Commission in September 2020, the proposal was adopted by the EU Council in 2021 but was scheduled for a vote to be implemented by the European Parliament on Monday. However, according to Stefan Berge, he had postponed the vote amid the concerns it would be misinterpreted as a ban on PoW crypto mining. At the time of publication, there’s no scheduled date for the EU officials that will vote on the framework.

The US president Joe Biden also announced a series of sanctions aimed at imposing devastating costs on the country because of the attack on Ukraine. The president announced that the US and the allies will impose sanctions on five major Russian banks as well as other elite nationals that were enriched on the expanse of the Russian state. The economic measures didn’t include cutting Russia from the SWIFT payment system.