LONDON, Aug 17 Reuters The European Central Bank ECB said on Wednesday it would harmonise how banks offer cryptoassets to ensure they have enough capital and expertise in a sector some European Union lawmakers have described as the Wild West.
Several crypto companies like Binance and Crypto.com have been authorised in EU countries such as Italy, France, Spain, Greece or Germany after complying with national safeguards to combat money laundering and terrorist financing.
This comes ahead of panEU licensing rules from 2023 at the earliest.
The ECB said banks were also considering whether to get involved in the crypto sector, but that national rules diverged quite extensively.
In Germany, certain crypto activities are subject to a banking licence requirement and to date, several banks have requested to be authorised to conduct these licensed activities, the ECB said in a statement.
It is in this context that the ECB is taking steps to harmonise the assessment of licensing requests.
The ECB, which directly regulates top euro zone lenders such as Deutsche Bank, UniCredit and BNP Paribas, said it would examine if crypto activities were in line with a bank39;s risk profile, which determines how much capital to hold.
The ECB will also check if a bank can identify and assess risks from cryptoassets and if board members and IT staff have robust experience in the sector.
Importantly, working closely with national supervisors, the ECB will strive towards greater…