A coalition of 39 prominent European financial institutions and technology groups is calling on EU lawmakers to accelerate the revision of distributed ledger technology regulations, citing concerns that the region may lag behind the US in the digital finance sector. In a jointly issued letter, signatories including Boerse Stuttgart Group, Nasdaq, and various EU fintech associations have requested that the European Commission and Parliament detach the DLT pilot regime from a larger package of 18 financial laws currently under review. By handling the DLT rules independently, the institutions argue that updates can be implemented more swiftly, according to a report by Bloomberg.
The DLT pilot, which has been in place since 2023, enables firms to experiment with the trading and settlement of tokenized assets, such as shares and bonds, using blockchain technology. However, as part of a broader set of financial laws navigating the EU's legislative process, the pilot's progress may be hindered by a prolonged review period.
The coalition is advocating for practical amendments, including the expansion of permissible assets, the increase of transaction limits to 150 billion euros, and the elimination of license expiry dates. These proposed changes, they contend, would provide firms with the necessary flexibility to establish substantial markets rather than limited trials.
The letter coincides with the US's efforts to establish laws governing the crypto space, including the proposed Genius Act, aimed at integrating crypto into mainstream finance. The European Commission has indicated a preference for passing the comprehensive legislative package in its entirety, as part of its strategy to mobilize savings into investments.