Leading European financial institutions and tech companies are pressing lawmakers to accelerate reforms governing distributed ledger technology, cautioning that the region may lag behind the US in the digital finance sector. In a collective letter, 39 signatories - including prominent names such as Boerse Stuttgart Group and Nasdaq, as well as fintech associations from multiple EU countries - have urged the European Commission and Parliament to detach the DLT pilot regime from a more extensive package of 18 financial laws currently under review. By handling these rules independently, the firms argue that updates can be implemented more rapidly, according to Bloomberg.
The DLT pilot, established in 2023, enables companies to experiment with tokenized assets like shares and bonds on blockchains. However, as part of a broader legislative package progressing through the EU's legislative process, industry groups warn that this could be a protracted process.
The coalition is advocating for tangible changes, such as broadening the range of permitted assets, increasing transaction limits to 150 billion euros, and eliminating license expiry dates. These proposed changes, they contend, would provide firms with the necessary latitude to develop substantial markets rather than limited trials. This appeal comes as the US is shaping its regulatory landscape, including the Genius Act, aimed at integrating crypto into mainstream finance.
The European Commission, however, has indicated a preference for passing the entire legislative package collectively, as part of its overarching strategy to channel savings into investments.