In this article, we cover Russia’s Supreme Court, which treats tokens as assets like money and property, France’s new cryptocurrency regulatory framework, and some industry developments in China (including blockchain ETF filings). We'll also cover Japan's World Decentralized Finance Governance Conference, Uzbekistan's cryptocurrency ban, and four countries' central bank digital currency updates.

China's Blockchain ETF and Crypto Business Warning

The China Securities Regulatory Commission revealed on Dec. 24 that it had received an application for a blockchain exchange-traded fund (ETF) from Shenzhen-based asset management firm Penghua Fund.If successfully launched, the fund will become China’s first blockchain ETF, according to Chinese media reports.It will track the performance of a blockchain index recently launched by the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, one of the two major stock exchanges in mainland China. The index is made up of the shares of the top 50 largest companies by market capitalization listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange.

On the same day, Reuters reported that China will expand the scope of its blockchain cross-border financing pilot platform. Lu Lei, Deputy Administrator of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange explained,The government will also "promote forward-looking research on foreign exchange reforms to deal with cryptocurrencies, and explore the construction of foreign exchange supervision and technical systems under the new situation."

Chinese authorities continue to scrutinize crypto businesses while President Xi Jinping has been friendly to blockchain after he publicly advocated the technology.

On Dec. 27, four regulators in Beijing jointly issued a warning about cryptocurrency trading and related activities within their jurisdiction. It reiterated a September 2017 announcement by seven Chinese government ministries, including the People’s Bank of China (PBOC), that led to the closure of crypto and initial coin offering (ICO) trading platforms in the country. Recently, the Shanghai headquarters of the People's Bank of China issued a similar notice reminding people that the orders of the seven ministries are still in effect.

The crypto mining industry has also come under scrutiny from Chinese regulators. In Sichuan, authorities hunted down crypto miners during the dry season to conserve electricity. In Tangshan City, Hebei Province, police recently seized 6,890 bitcoin mining equipment and arrested a group of scammers.

Russian Supreme Court Recognizes Tokens as Assets Like Currency or Property

The Russian Supreme Court has clarified that “digital rights” is the term currently used in Russian law to describe cryptocurrencies and tokens,In Russian law, tokens, like other assets such as legal tender and property, are the subject of bribery.Although Russia currently has no regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies, various institutions in the country, including the courts, have previously referred to them as “alternative currencies,” which is prohibited by Russian law.

Meanwhile, Russia’s central bank has reportedly begun testing stablecoins in its regulatory sandbox.Bank of Russia Governor Elvira Nabiullina explained to local publication Interfax on Dec. 25 that the bank is looking at companies that want to issue tokens backed by certain real assets, “but we don’t think they will serve as a means of payment and become an alternative currency.” ,” she emphasized.

Regarding central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) that are being discussed in many countries, “we are also at the stage of studying this topic,” the governor revealed. But, she noted, "first, we need to understand what the advantages are for our citizens, for our businesses," compared to other options.

France Publishes New Crypto Regulations

France’s financial markets regulator (AMF) published its new rules for digital asset service providers (DASPs) on Dec. 20. They define the types of services that are considered DASPs under the new regulatory framework adopted in April. Clarify which specific rules apply to crypto or ICO services.The regulator detailed that two types of crypto activities must be registered, further stating:

If you provide custody of digital assets and/or buy or sell digital assets for statutory tenders in France, you must be registered with the AMF.

Registrants must establish a company in France and they will be checked for compliance with Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) regulations. The AMF also recently approved France's first public ICO.

Japan Hosts World DeFi Conference

Japan’s largest financial regulator, the Financial Services Agency (FSA), announced on Dec. 23 that it will organize a blockchain global governance conference in partnership with Nikkei. The agency detailed the Osaka Leaders' Declaration of the G20 summit, which was issued during the Japanese presidency in June this year.The meeting was in response to the consensus among international regulators on the “importance of working with various stakeholders to ensure public policy objectives in the decentralized finance ecosystem”.

The conference welcomes stakeholders from all over the world, including "stakeholders active in the open source software community (such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Hyperledger)", and also invites university researchers, related organizations, business people in the field, Civil society and financial regulators.According to the FSA, the event aims to “discuss how to better govern the decentralized finance ecosystem.”

Crypto Ban in Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan has banned the purchase of cryptocurrencies. The country’s national program governing body recently passed amendments to the regulatory regime, imposing significant restrictions on local individuals using cryptocurrencies privately.The agency issued an order on Dec. 6 stating that only citizens of Uzbekistan are allowed to sell crypto assets on registered exchanges. The country has now also banned the use of decentralized cryptocurrencies as a form of payment.

Furthermore, any transactions involving cryptocurrencies obtained through anonymous means are prohibited. However, the regulator has not yet clarified how it plans to determine whether someone's digital currency is involved in such a transfer.

Additionally, crypto trading platforms should only serve verified users over the age of 18, and those users’ names should not be on the government’s list for suspected money laundering and terrorist financing.

CBDCs in South Korea, Japan and the Bahamas

In addition to Russia, three other countries made announcements about the progress of their CBDCs last week.

On December 27, the Central Bank of the Bahamas launched a pilot program for a digital version of the Bahamian dollar in Exuma, which will expand to Abaco in the first half of 2020. The bank description:As the pilot work in Exuma progresses, the central bank will simultaneously facilitate the development of new regulations for digital currencies and strengthen consumer protections, particularly around data protection standards.

The central bank added that “reforms will also be advanced to allow non-banks to participate directly in the domestic payments system. The early passage of the new Central Bank of the Bahamas Bill will support the development of some regulations that would otherwise be under the current Payment Systems Act.” Further reforms are possible."

Another country that is investigating the benefits of issuing a CBDC is South Korea. While the Bank of Korea (BOK) has repeatedly announced that it is not currently considering issuing a CBDC, it is reportedly organizing a task force dedicated to CBDC research, local media reported on Friday.

In its "Monetary Policy 2020" report, the Bank of Korea revealed that,It will continue to research innovations based on distributed ledger technology, encrypted assets and CBDC, among others.The Bank of Korea mentioned:“We will be actively engaged in discussions with the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) and other international organizations, closely monitoring the development of CBDC by other central banks.”The bank also stated that,Additional CBDC specialists will be recruited, and job postings for digital currency specialists will begin on Dec. 10.

Likewise, Japan is another Asian country that is actively researching the impact of a CBDC on the current system without committing to issuance. The Bank of Japan (BOJ) published a concluding report on Dec. 24 outlining the legal implications of a CBDC in Japan.

The report highlights a wide range of issues that need to be addressed, including whether CBDCs can be considered legal tender, ways to combat their counterfeit or replicas, whether their issuance is consistent with the Bank of Japan Act, and whether central banks can restrict access to certain people it. Other issues relate to AML/CFT regulations, protection of personal information, and penalties for counterfeiting or duplicating a CBDC under current criminal law.The BOJ concluded: “By illuminating these potential legal issues that cut across multiple areas of law, the report intends to facilitate further discussions on CBDCs.”

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The original text comes from news.bitcoin.com, compiled by the Bluemountain Labs team, the English copyright belongs to the original author, please contact the editor for Chinese reprint.