Europe wants to ban blockchain technology?

[Authoritai]

Link: https://news.bitcoin.com/europe-power-ban-blockchain/

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) is responsible for promoting investor protection, orderly markets and financial stability. At a blockchain conference last week in London, Patrick Armstrong, Senior Risk Analysis Officer, detailed ESMA’s approach to blockchain technology. One strategy he noted was to ban blockchain products or processes altogether.

[mrcash02]

Sad news, better to prepare yourself because they will try to do something against Bitcoin. If they don't ban it, they will want fees over it. This EU should end, they disrespect the individual rights and the countrie's soberany. Everything they want is to rule, live on confort, everything with europeans money. Demagogues and hypocrites,

[MingLee]

Another issue of the central governance of the EU. Won't let individual countries choose their stances and so they go for a blanket ban because it ends up freeing the citizens of Europe from the slavery set up by the Euro and the excessive labor markets.

Leave it to Brussels to find a stupid way to start blocking stuff. Can't make themselves useful until they attack the average working man.

[gribble]

It is bad news for europeans and the planning to banning bitcoin on Europe on january 2018, still there is has long time for ESMA learn about bitcoin and not bunning usage of bitcoins, because bitcoins can not be banned just on Europe only. 

[Junko]

How can you ban blockchain technology? I mean how is that possible? Would't that be like trying to ban mathematics?

[shinratensei_]

The innovation has not reached a ‘tipping point’ where active regulatory participation is needed.
The third approach, which Armstrong called the “facilitative or catalyst approach” was also ruled out for the time being. Using this approach, ESMA would “actively facilitate and regulate the product or process” if there are enough potential economic and social benefits.

ESMA will take this approach “when we believe an innovation has matured or become too large to ignore; that is, a tipping point has been reached,” he explained.

Another exit will happen.
Strict just for dig up the potential on any innovation. It is unfair in my mind.

[MingLee]

The innovation has not reached a ‘tipping point’ where active regulatory participation is needed.
The third approach, which Armstrong called the “facilitative or catalyst approach” was also ruled out for the time being. Using this approach, ESMA would “actively facilitate and regulate the product or process” if there are enough potential economic and social benefits.

ESMA will take this approach “when we believe an innovation has matured or become too large to ignore; that is, a tipping point has been reached,” he explained.

Another exit will happen.
Strict just for dig up the potential on any innovation. It is unfair in my mind.

It's actually kind of interesting considering the nature of the "-exits" within the EU right now; considering that Italy is next on the chopping block (however unlikely because of the benefits given from the EU to Italy) it could mean that the state of the EU is incredibly shaky and, honestly, if Italy leaves, it will start to spell the end of the Union. More countries will aim to opt out, and especially in Le Pen gets in in France, then it is over.

The EU will try and restrict what it can with the power it has now, but they know they're losing bigly. First Brexit, then Trump, and now Le Pen leading.

Interesting times.

[Carlton Banks]

considering that Italy is next on the chopping block (however unlikely because of the benefits given from the EU to Italy) it could mean that the state of the EU is incredibly shaky and, honestly, if Italy leaves, it will start to spell the end of the Union. More countries will aim to opt out, and especially in Le Pen gets in in France, then it is over.

Italy vote on their EUxit this weekend, right?

[abhishek.g]

I have heard that Germany has blocked bitcoin but I am not sure why would a country do this as bitcoin is exploding the market. Soon the market will get hacked by bitcoin as it is wild and have less of a feedback system unlike those of commodity exchanges in which supply and demand controls market.

[acroman08]

The first, banning, is a power that ESMA and the MSs [Member States] will have once MiFID II/MiFIR becomes effective on 1 January 2018. Until then, if we believe a harmful ‘tipping point’ has been reached, we can take measures such as issuing warnings.

Even if they do decide that a harmful tipping point has been reached, they won't be able to ban blockchain till 2018. For the meantime, all they could actually do is "issue warnings".

Besides, for now, they have decided to take the "wait and see approach".

So, I think that there isn't really a need to be concerned and anyway, everyone knows that banning something doesn't really work much these days.

[knyolku123]

I think it can happen because bitcoin is used to illegal activities or something else which make economic from this country threatened. I don't worry about that during the price of bitcoin still stable and not go down.

[mprep]

As it seems that quite a few haven't actually read the article (or did and are blinded by some sort of vendetta against the EU), I'll clue in anyone still reading in: they aren't planning to ban blockchain technology.

“When confronted with a financial innovation, a regulator can roughly take one of three approaches,” he explained.

The first approach, which Armstrong called the “restrictive approach” is to ban or restrict products and processes based on blockchain technology.

This being any financial innovation. They are simply listing the ways they approach any changes in the financial world.

However, Armstrong confirmed that ESMA is not considering this first approach. “We can rule out the first restrictive approach,” he said, citing that the authority does not see blockchains posing risk to its three objectives; stability, protection and integrity.

This thread (and especially it's title) is simple fear mongering, even more so than the article. The chances of anything happening to Bitcoin in relations to EU bans and/or regulations is minuscule, especially considering the current political, societal and to some extent economic situation of the European Union.

[Yakamoto]

Link: https://news.bitcoin.com/europe-power-ban-blockchain/

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) is responsible for promoting investor protection, orderly markets and financial stability. At a blockchain conference last week in London, Patrick Armstrong, Senior Risk Analysis Officer, detailed ESMA’s approach to blockchain technology. One strategy he noted was to ban blockchain products or processes altogether.

Well, why am I not surprised that the EU is looking to do something like this. It's like classifying a banana based on whatever the hell it was they were trying to push as a "proper" banana. A group of unelected officials justifying their positions by making the lives of everyone else just a bit harder.

I don't know how they would effectively enforce something like this, but inefficiency seems to be something the EU excels at.

[zahra4577]

It is bad news for europeans and the planning to banning bitcoin on Europe on january 2018, still there is has long time for ESMA learn about bitcoin and not bunning usage of bitcoins, because bitcoins can not be banned just on Europe only. 

If that happens,it will not only influence European bitcoiners but the entire bitcoin community all over the world.Since they only considering it as one option,we hope they never go for it

[Doms]

I think they don't fully understand bitcoin or that they feel that it can be a threat to their own currency. Part of the reason for bitcoin's rise a few months ago was the Brexit poll result, and maybe if another country decides they want out of EU, that could be another good thing for bitcoin.

[gentlemand]

I have heard that Germany has blocked bitcoin but I am not sure why would a country do this as bitcoin is exploding the market.

Not so. Certain Bitcoin selling sites have fallen afoul of existing financial legislation there. Other than that Germany's a pretty nifty place to be a Bitcoiner. There's no capital gains if you hang on to it for over a year for instance. The government has also declared it private money. 

[The_Dark_Knight]

How can you ban blockchain technology? I mean how is that possible? Would't that be like trying to ban mathematics?

Probably but this is not the first time something like that happen, years before there were attempt to try to stop the average people of using cryptography, but this was ruled against because it was the same as banning math.

[Wind_FURY]

I am not a bit concerned about this "threat". They can try banning it but there is really nothing they can do. How are they going to stop the whole darkmarket from using it? Or how are they going to stop the ransomware using hackers? They do not know what to do except to FUD and make threats. The regulators in Europe cannot stop unlicensed porn, drugs online, pedophilia, unlicensed gambling online and a whole lot more where Bitcoin is very useful for payments. Let us face it, this is the world we are living in now.

[clickerz]

I am not a bit concerned about this "threat". They can try banning it but there is really nothing they can do. How are they going to stop the whole darkmarket from using it? Or how are they going to stop the ransomware using hackers? They do not know what to do except to FUD and make threats. The regulators in Europe cannot stop unlicensed porn, drugs online, pedophilia, unlicensed gambling online and a whole lot more where Bitcoin is very useful for payments. Let us face it, this is the world we are living in now.

Agree, even if they banned this blockchain technology, people will make way how to used it. Now, that we've experience how it works and function,  this move of EU will only spark interests and curiosity among people.

[pooya87]

news.bitcoin.com is officially added to my news site shitlist with this new title they chose for their article because it has nothing to do with banning blockchain technology and i have seen other articles from them that were worthless click baits.