Taiwan's Parliament Considers New Bill to Regulate Crypto

Taiwan’s Parliament Considers New Bill to Regulate Crypto

Time Stamp: October 27, 2023 9:25 AM
Source Node: 2960482

Key Takeaways

  • Taiwanese legislators have introduced the Virtual Asset Management Bill to the Legislative Yuan.
  • The bill sets out obligations for Virtual Asset Service Providers, including fund segregation and internal control systems, but does not specify rules for stablecoin issuers or advertising.
  • Following the bill's enactment, existing companies will have six months to obtain the necessary licenses.

Taiwan's Legislative Yuan, the island's single-house parliament, has taken an important step toward cryptocurrency regulation.

On October 25th, legislators presented the Virtual Asset Management Bill, designed to enhance consumer protection and provide effective oversight of the burgeoning industry.

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The bill is a 30-page document that outlines various responsibilities for Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs). These include the segregation of customer and company funds, the establishment of comprehensive internal control and audit systems, and mandatory membership in a local trade association.

Interestingly, the bill refrains from demanding that stablecoin issuers maintain a 1:1 ratio with reserve funds and leave the specifics of advertising guidelines to the "competent authority."

Fines for VASPs operating without proper licensing range from a minimum of 2 million Taiwanese dollars (approximately $60,000) to a maximum of 20 million TWD (around $600,000).

For those already in business, a six-month grace period is allotted to comply with licensing requirements once the legislation is enacted.

This comes on the heels of recent guidelines set forth by Taiwan's Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) in September 2023. The FSC explicitly bans foreign VASPs from offering their services in Taiwan unless they have received approval from the regulatory body. 

Adding to this regulatory development is the formation of the Taiwan Virtual Asset Platform and Transaction Business Association by major local cryptocurrency exchanges such as MaiCoin, BitstreetX, Hoya Bit, Bitgin, Rybit, Xrex, and Shangbito. Established on September 26th, this self-regulatory body aims to collaborate with regulators and bolster the crypto industry in Taiwan.

In other Taiwan-related news, Circle is launching a Points-to-Crypto service in collaboration with Taiwan's FamilyMart and BitoGroup, allowing FamiPoints to be converted to USDC.

Gile is a Market Sentiment Analyst who understands what public events may form what emotions. Her experience researching Web3 news and public market messages – including cryptocurrency news reports, PRs, and social network streams – is critical to her role in helping lead the Crypto News Editorial Team.
As an intelligent professional in public relations, together with the team, she aims to determine real VS fake news patterns, and bring her findings to anyone searching for unbiased news and events happening in the FinTech markets. Her expertise is uncovering the latest trustworthy & informative Web3 announcements to the masses.
When she's not researching the trustworthiness of mainstream stories, she spends time enjoying her terrace view and taking meticulous care of her outdoor environment.

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