Increasing concern about unregulated trading in cryptocurrencies has led Canada’s security administrators (the “CSA”) to take steps to regulate the burgeoning crypto market. All platforms that facilitate trades in a wide range of crypto assets have now been determined by securities authorities to be “trading in securities” warranting oversight. This is good news adding a layer of protection for buyers of crypto. This is decidedly less good news for players who preferred the wild west atmosphere of an unregulated market.
To conduct business in Canada, all crypto platforms must now be registered with the relevant securities administrator or register and then apply for an exemption from securities regulation, if available. As always, some players will be pleased for the legitimization that registration may bestow. Others will be critical of the new regulatory controls which would appear to undermine some of the selling features of trading in crypto; that somehow it should be totally private (it’s not, someone has your data) and that this magical new asset should, as of right, be beyond oversight. All well and good until there is a failure or a fraud and the public asks government: “Where‘s my digital asset and why didn’t you protect me?”. Well the sheriff is now in town.
Further details can be found here.
For more information, please contact:
Barry Campbell: barry@campbellstrategies.com
