[2014-12-18] CD: Lawsky Outlines Revisions to New York's BitLicense in DC Speech

[LiteCoinGuy]

Lawsky Outlines Revisions to New York's BitLicense in DC Speech

Ben Lawsky announced the latest revisions to the draft BitLicense today in Washington, DC, announcing a host of changes in response to reactions from its public comment period.

The New York State Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) superintendent made the announcement this morning in a keynote speech delivered at a panel event hosted by think tank Bipartisan Policy Center, where he spoke about the regulatory landscape around bitcoin and other payment technologies.

http://www.coindesk.com/lawsky-outlines-revisions-new-yorks-bitlicense-dc-speech/

[LiteCoinGuy]

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/12/18/bitcoin-regulation-idUSL1N0U21GD20141218

[Chef Ramsay]

This is setting the stage for a safe, more secure and prosperous Bitcoin community which is welcoming to all in this 2015 year of the BTC.

[LiteCoinGuy]

    1 Will publish a new draft in next 2 days.
    2 There will be an additional 30 day comment period.
    3 Bitlicense will go live late Jan 2015.
    4 Software developers will not be regulated.
    5 Merchants, miners, consumers and investors will not be regulated.
    6 Record keeping slashed from 10 to 7 years.
    7 Removed requirements to keep records of all parties to virtual currency transactions.
    8 Will issue fast track "interim" 2 year licenses to businesses that may not yet be able to qualify.

[DooMAD]

Beautiful.  Lawsky referring to banks as the "legacy financial system".  Even the regulators now think that banks are an old and antiquated model in need of a complete overhaul.

"Virtual currency could eventually cause some amount of self-reflection in the legacy financial system," he said. "If banks continue to torpedo even modest updates to the payment system, they ultimately do run at least some risk of facing the Blockbuster Video problem."

Banks - the "VHS rental" of money.   

[LiteCoinGuy]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-switch/wp/2014/12/18/why-bitcoin-advocates-might-like-new-yorks-new-proposed-rules-for-virtual-currency/

[JorgeStolfi]

Does anyone remember who had the idea of a special license for bitcoin companies in NY?  I thought that it had been a request of the companies, who felt that the existing regulations would be too restrictive.  But I have been told that the BitLicense was Lawsky's idea.  Can anyone confirm that?