A coalition of European financial firms and tech groups is pressing lawmakers to accelerate reforms governing distributed ledger technology, cautioning that the region is at risk of lagging behind the US in the digital finance sector. In a joint letter, 39 prominent signatories, including Boerse Stuttgart Group and Nasdaq, have appealed to the European Commission and Parliament to decouple the DLT pilot regime from a broader legislative package currently under review.
By handling the rules independently, the industry argues that updates can be implemented more swiftly. The DLT pilot, established in 2023, enables firms to experiment with tokenized assets, such as shares and bonds, on blockchains. However, as part of a larger set of 18 financial laws, the process may take years to complete. The coalition is advocating for practical reforms, including the expansion of permissible assets, increased transaction limits to 150 billion euros, and the removal of license expiry dates.
These changes would provide firms with the necessary flexibility to establish genuine markets rather than limited trials. The letter coincides with the US's efforts to regulate the space, including the proposed Genius Act, aimed at integrating crypto into mainstream finance.
The European Commission has indicated a preference for passing the full legislative package as part of its strategy to mobilize savings into investment.