EU securities regulators arm themselves with encrypted data

In this illustration from February 14, 2018, representations of Ripple, Bitcoin, Ethereum and Litecoin virtual currencies can be seen on a PC motherboard. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/

LONDON, Aug 3 (Reuters) – The European Union’s securities regulator has begun preparations to tighten its grip on crypto trading after the European Union agreed to groundbreaking rules to regulate its so-called “Wild West” industry, a public tender document shows. Review.

While crypto asset firms will be licensed by national regulators in 27 countries, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) will monitor larger players.read more

ESMA on Tuesday made a public procurement request to providers of transaction data for crypto transactions, including spot trades and derivatives.

It does not include transactions from the blockchain or the distributed ledger technology that underpins cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin.

“Coverage should cover all major exchanges and crypto assets in order to provide a fair representation of the crypto market landscape,” ESMA said in its notice.

Regulators use transaction data to detect abuses in markets, identify participants on both sides of a transaction, and look for risk-increasing positions that could disrupt an orderly market.

“Data should be provided on a daily frequency and include access to order books where you can view spreads and liquidity across exchanges and trading pairs (fiat and cryptocurrencies),” it said.

The contract value is up to EUR 100,000.

Reporting by Hugh Jones; Editing by Kim Coghill

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