The Malta cryptocurrency regulator has said that none of the local licenses issued under the markets of the Crypto-Asets Regulation (Mica) is in danger following a recent peer exam by the regulators of the European Union.
“No MICA in Malta license is likely to revocation or revaluation following the results of the peer exam,” an MFSA spokesperson told Cointelegraph, adding that the authority has already started to solve the problems identified in the journal.
The declaration made after the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), the main surveillance organization of Europe supervising the compliance of the Mica, published on Thursday a peer exam on certain lauches of authorization of Mica by the Financial Services Authority (MFSA) of Malta.
The MFSA said that Malta’s continuous commitment to close the collaboration with the EU authorities and its role as a proactive leader in the regulation of cryptography is not in question, despite a certain level of skepticism in the community.
Malta is a pioneer in the regulation of cryptography in the EU
An MFSA spokesperson said that the ESMA report recognized the regulator as a very effective supervisor.
“This is not surprising since Malta was a pioneer in cryptographic regulations in 2018,” said the spokesperson.
“I think that the journal painted Malta in a good day; many forget that the Maltese has fully regulated the casps (providers of cryptographic asset services) even before the Mica is envisaged,” said Xreg’s advice partner, Nathan Catania, Cointelegraph.
Since the introduction of three bills linked to the crypto in 2018, the Maltese government has become a pioneer in cryptographic regulations in Europe.
“Malta is the first country to regulate the DLT (distributed major book technology) and cryptographic assets so holistic, covering both technological and financial services,” the MFSA said in a statement in July 2018.
Malta to implement the advice by September 2025
In the journal, ESMA has described several recommendations to MFSA and other competent national authorities (NCA) in the EU to ensure appropriate supervision under the Mica.
The EU regulator has specifically highlighted the need to assess the growth growth plans in a timely manner, to examine conflicts of interest in multi-service casps and to assess the risks of exposure to decentralized finances (DEFI) and non-regulated services.
“We hope that this review gives more confidence to those who envisage licenses to Malta and our peers with regard to our cross -border supervision framework,” noted Kenneth Farrugia, CEO of the MFSA, in an official declaration in response to the exam.
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According to the agency, the MFSA plans to fully implement the report’s recommendations by September.
ESMA highlights the implications for NCAs
Although focusing on Malta in its last peer exam, ESMA stressed that the examination targets all NCA through the EU.
“ESMA has sought to examine the MFSA approach in the authorization and supervision of the company, but not to review the functioning of the specific company,” said a spokesperson for ESMA in Cointelegraph, adding:
“In the future, ESMA will continue to use the peer review tool when appropriate, including compared to other jurisdictions and subjects.”
The regulator also stressed that peer exams includes recommendations to be considered in the current supervision work, as well as in the authorization of future procedures.
Malta crypto surveillance is not unrelated to skepticism
Although many have perceived the ESMA peers’ examination in monitoring Malta cryptography as generally positive, the country’s approach to the supervision of cryptography was faced with its part of skepticism.
Malta has long continued his vision of becoming a “blockchain island”, demanding that cryptographic platforms obtain a license in financial services in 2018. However, in 2020, 70% of initial candidates did not obtain the license, much speculating that the rules were too strict.
In 2021, a unit of the Malta Chamber of Commerce rejected the allegations that the country had failed to maintain appropriate regulatory monitoring of cryptocurrency companies.
In 2022, the Times of Malta also pointed out that the FTX of the Crypto collapsed had two companies recorded by Malta, but the MFSA said that none of the two was authorized to provide services.
Certain surveys have stressed that “the rapid and cowardly approach” of Malta to attract cryptographic companies, stressing that 85% of cryptographic companies recorded in Malta finally left the island after the two -year transition period in 2023.
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