{"id":816692,"date":"2025-01-03T02:14:02","date_gmt":"2025-01-03T08:14:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2025\/01\/03\/how-crypto-laws-are-changing-across-the-world-in-2025\/"},"modified":"2025-01-03T02:14:02","modified_gmt":"2025-01-03T08:14:02","slug":"how-crypto-laws-are-changing-across-the-world-in-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2025\/01\/03\/how-crypto-laws-are-changing-across-the-world-in-2025\/","title":{"rendered":"How crypto laws are changing across the world in 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n Crypto firms are leaving Europe as regulations tighten, but the future is brighter in America as crypto friendly regulators take over. <\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
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by
\n Yohan Yun<\/a><\/span>
\n 9 min<\/span>
\n January 2, 2025<\/span>\n <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n

\"Legal\n <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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\"Voiced<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

Everything looks set to change for crypto regulation and legislation in the United States in 2025.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Token Alliance co-chair Paul Atkins has been nominated to replace crypto antagonist Gary Gensler as chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), signaling a major shift in how crypto is regulated in the United States.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Gensler\u2019s tenure, though instrumental in laying regulatory groundwork and case laws, drew heavy criticism for its reliance on enforcement-driven regulation.<\/p>\n

Across the Atlantic, the European Union has implemented the first of its kind Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) regulation to oversee the crypto industry. While praised for its ambition, MiCA\u2019s stringent rules are driving some businesses out of the region, adding to debates over the regulatory burden on digital markets. Meanwhile, Asia continues to integrate crypto into its legal systems, with significant cases setting local precedents.<\/p>\n

To unpack the most important legal developments of 2024 and forecast what\u2019s next, Magazine spoke with legal experts Catherine Smirnova and Yuriy Brisov of Digital & Analogue Partners in Europe, Joshua Chu of the Hong Kong Web3 Association, and Charlyn Ho of Rikka Group in the US.<\/p>\n

The discussion has been edited for clarity and brevity.<\/p>\n

Magazine: How will crypto law in the US change under the new administration?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Brisov: <\/strong>The Biden administration did a lot to prepare the legal frameworks for crypto assets. I\u2019m sure that the proceeds of this preparation will help the next administration.<\/p>\n

Willingly or not, the SEC helped shape the surface of crypto regulation so far. Common law countries are usually based on case law. We usually regulate when we have a sufficient amount of case law, and now is the time.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"A
A 1946 case stands as the basis for modern-day digital assets. (Alvaro Carriho)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Today, both Republicans and Democrats agree that crypto legislative reform is needed in the US. We still base crypto decisions on the orange groves in California in 1946, or the Howey case.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Ho: <\/strong>The stepping down of Gensler<\/a> and the nomination of Atkins<\/a> to head the SEC is going to create a lot of change in the way that the crypto industry is regulated. When I say regulated, I don\u2019t think that we will have an overarching regulatory regime in the next year. In fact, I would hazard a guess, Trump and Atkins are probably opposed to creating new regulations, but rather increasing the clarity as to where the crypto industry can operate.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Gensler was criticized for taking an overly aggressive approach where he was stepping outside of the SEC\u2019s congressional mandate and essentially making up powers and exercising what it did not have constitutionally. The change we\u2019ll see is hopefully a decrease in such regulation by enforcement<\/a> and perhaps more of a proactive, business-friendly, crypto-friendly approach taken by the agency as opposed to more of an antagonistic one.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Paul
Paul Atkins has been selected to lead the SEC after Gensler\u2019s resignation. (SEC)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Magazine: What changes can we expect at the SEC with Atkins stepping in as chair, and how much influence will he have on ongoing legal matters?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ho: <\/strong>From all accounts, Atkins\u2019s background is very pro-business. He was an SEC commissioner previously so there is some history in how he would approach this role.\u00a0<\/p>\n

That being said, there is a precedent set by Gensler for him to follow. Just because a new [chair] is named doesn\u2019t mean that all the legal work product that has come out previously is just gone. Let\u2019s hypothetically say there\u2019s a lawsuit pending\u2014and there are many. If Atkins wants to change the SEC\u2019s position, he wouldn\u2019t just be able to declare it. They would have to go through the legal process and have some justification in order to alter their claims. If they\u2019re the plaintiff, they could just drop the lawsuit entirely. But the commissioner doesn\u2019t have unfettered discretion to completely change everything that\u2019s in process.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Magazine: How are businesses in the EU responding to the implementation of MiCA and other digital regulations?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Smirnova:<\/strong> This year, what I call the Mario Draghi report<\/a> said that our digital policy is not as good as we expected as a lot of potential unicorns are moving to the US. We believed that ex ante and clear regulation from early on will give transparency, but no\u2014businesses treat it as a regulatory burden.\u00a0<\/p>\n

MiCA, of course, which is the first [crypto] regulation in the world covering all the fields, trying to make this market more transparent and clear to all participants. Now we have regulation which is more strict<\/a> and doesn\u2019t require any additional actions from national jurisdictions.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Next year, we\u2019ll see if we still have a crypto market in the EU or if the regulatory burden will drive them out. We\u2019re also expecting additional protection for digital consumers, through the Digital Fairness Act. What we\u2019re witnessing now is that digital assets markets are regulated more by regulations that aren\u2019t specially crafted for them. We have E-commerce Directive, DMA, DSA and GDPR. The proposal [for the Digital Fairness Act] was published already and released by the European Commission for comments, and we expect it will come into effect next year. It will be a high burden of pressure on digital business in the EU.<\/p>\n

\"Italy\u2019s
Italy\u2019s former prime minister\u2019s 2024 report presents a reality check for the future of European competitiveness. (European Commission)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Chu:<\/strong> You need three things: legislation, enforcement action, and ultimately those two to be tested before the court of law; before you can really say that the regulatory regime in any particular jurisdiction is maturing.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Using GDPR as context, when it came out, it rocked a lot of boats. The clarity on what to do only came about when the enforcement and fines started raining down.<\/p>\n

Magazine: And are there crypto cases that have been tested in Hong Kong\u2019s court of law?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Chu:<\/strong> In Hong Kong, we have seen this year legislative cases that are now being tested in court. So we have quite a few landmark decisions in Hong Kong, including the first case against JPEX<\/a>. We will likely see more developments of that fraud case coming in the next year.\u00a0<\/p>\n

We have also seen cases against decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs)<\/a>. So we\u2019re seeing how private parties, as well as regulators are catching up in terms of tackling these new entities.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Magazine: How can Hong Kong fulfill its crypto hub ambitions with only a few licensed exchanges?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Chu: <\/strong>Do you really need that many exchanges floating around? If we look at it in the more traditional sense of a stock exchange, there\u2019s one stock exchange. Why do we suddenly need three exchanges trading the same ten tokens aside from maybe arbitrage environments?\u00a0<\/p>\n

Being a hub is great and having choices is great. But similar to virtual banks, there will be batches being rolled out<\/a>. The last thing you want to do is create way too many competing exchanges and then it gets nowhere. It also spreads regulatory oversight quite thin as a result.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Hong Kong has one of the more stringent regulatory regimes. You can\u2019t even have options or derivatives. So people are wondering why are you buying it if it\u2019s just on spot and you\u2019re holding it. There are lots of issues that need to be ironed out.<\/p>\n

Magazine: What are some legal developments that are generally being overlooked by crypto industry participants?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Smirnova: <\/strong>First, the Digital Markets Act and the Digital Services Act<\/a> came into effect and a lot of tech companies just left the EU.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Number two, the EU AI Act was adopted in and it affects all jurisdictions. It\u2019s expected to have the same effect as the GDPR. If you provide AI related services in the EU, this act is applicable to your business. It doesn\u2019t matter where you are incorporated.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"EU
EU AI Act expected to have a GDPR-like effect on companies on all jurisdictions. (Sanket Mishra)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Now, digital companies need to worry about competition, transparency, privacy, AI and about consumer welfare.<\/p>\n

Ho:<\/strong> I was keen on some of the AI agents and AI token developments<\/a>. I think that is a huge development in 2024. We\u2019re only going to see more of that in the future, especially with Coinbase\u2019s AI agent transactions. To me, that\u2019s just a little crazy. I find that pretty novel and legally very gray in terms of liability<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I would say we probably won\u2019t see much legislation, but there may be court cases that shed light on liability allocation. The reason I say that I don\u2019t foresee a lot of legislation is because for many years, the crypto industry has been without an overarching legislative regime in the US. We don\u2019t have a MiCA equivalent here. That\u2019s kind of why the current SEC has been enforcing the way it has. They are essentially operating and interpreting laws that are many years old and that were never kind of contemplating crypto in mind. So to think that we would have AI-crypto legislation, I think is kind of a tall order.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"AI
AI agents started to own their own crypto wallets in 2024. (Ethermage)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

One of the other big things that happen is the overturning of the Chevron deference doctrine<\/a>. The Supreme Court basically overturned this doctrine that\u2019s been in place for quite some time that essentially granted or required deference to an agency\u2019s interpretation of a rule.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s important because in this particular instance with crypto, that means that the courts don\u2019t need to defer to the agency\u2019s interpretation. Gensler\u2019s interpretation or his commission\u2019s interpretation was certainly very limited in crypto industries\u2019 ability to operate. If the courts no longer have to defer to that interpretation, the logical thought would be that the crypto industry would have more freedom to operate.<\/p>\n

Brisov:<\/strong> A big development for next year I expect is the understanding of crypto assets. In common law, we have two types of assets. We call them chosen in possession and chosen in action, which are basically tangible and intangible things. Possession is your iPhone, your apartment, or your car. Things in action are like securities, dept, or intellectual property.\u00a0<\/p>\n

If we take NFTs, for instance, they used to be treated as just some form of tangible assets, though they are literally intangible. Therefore they couldn\u2019t be security. But now, the SEC has started to investigate OpenSea. They claim that NFTs can also be securities.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Legal
Legal classification of digital assets advances. (Jonathan Borba)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In the UK, there is a bill<\/a> that offers the third dimension of assets which is not chosen possession, not chosen action, but a third category of assets: a digital thing, or digital asset. Through the case law in the US and in the UK, I think that legislation is also upcoming. This specific digital asset will form a new type of asset in the legal domain. That will be a huge trend that will be moving forward through upcoming years.<\/p>\n

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Yohan Yun<\/h2>\n

Yohan Yun is a multimedia journalist covering blockchain since 2017. He has contributed to crypto media outlet Forkast as an editor and has covered Asian tech stories as an assistant reporter for Bloomberg BNA and Forbes. He spends his free time cooking, and experimenting with new recipes.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n

Read More<\/a>
\n Cointelegraph by Yohan Yun<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Crypto firms are leaving Europe as regulations tighten, but the future is brighter in America as crypto friendly regulators take over. by Yohan Yun 9 min January 2, 2025 Share Share Share Share Everything looks set to change for crypto regulation and legislation in the United States in 2025. Token Alliance co-chair Paul Atkins has<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":816693,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[395,22791],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-816692","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-changing","8":"category-crypto"},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/816692","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=816692"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/816692\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/816693"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=816692"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=816692"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=816692"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}