A coalition of 39 European financial institutions and tech companies is advocating for the European Commission and Parliament to accelerate the revision of distributed ledger technology regulations, citing the risk of Europe falling behind the US in the digital finance sector. In a joint letter, signatories including Boerse Stuttgart Group and Nasdaq are pushing for the DLT pilot regime to be decoupled from a broader package of 18 financial laws currently under review, allowing for more rapid updates. The DLT pilot, established in 2023, enables companies to test the trading and settlement of tokenized assets using blockchain technology.
However, the current legislative process, which encompasses 18 financial laws, is expected to take years to complete. The coalition is seeking practical reforms, including the expansion of permissible assets, increased transaction limits, and the removal of license expiry dates, to create a more conducive environment for the development of real markets.
This call to action comes as the US is shaping its regulatory framework for the industry, including the proposed Genius Act, aimed at integrating crypto into mainstream finance. The European Commission, however, has indicated a preference for passing the entire legislative package as part of its broader strategy to mobilize savings and investment.