- The SPD, Greens, and Left would have pushed the position through in the negotiations. In its MiCA guidelines, the European Parliament wants to prohibit the provision of crypto services based on “environmentally unsustainable consensus mechanisms.”
- The final decision on the draught is scheduled for February 28 in Parliament.
- Following the vote next Monday, there will be a trilogue between the EU Commission, the Parliament, and the member states at the conclusion of which the Commission will be tasked with evaluating the Parliament’s proposal.
The EU Parliament’s final draught prohibits the use of proof-of-work-based cryptocurrency services. The SPD, Greens, and Left would have pushed the position through in the negotiations. In its MiCA guidelines, the European Parliament wants to prohibit the provision of crypto services based on “environmentally unsustainable consensus mechanisms.”
This is according to the final compromise proposal of the responsible Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs (ECON), which BTC-ECHO has access to. In reality, this could mean the end of proof-of-work-based cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin in the European Union on January 1, 2025. The final decision on the draught is scheduled for February 28 in Parliament.
Stefan Berger told BTC-ECHO that he believes the proposal will be approved “very soon.” As Chairman of the ECON Committee, he is largely responsible in the European Parliament. He is responsible for the design of the MiCA Directive on cryptocurrency regulation. The SPD, Greens, and Left have all been vocal in their support for the Bitcoin prohibition, according to the CDU politician in an interview with BTC-ECHO.
The Christian Democrat, right-wing conservative and liberal groups had vehemently opposed the inclusion of the prohibition in the negotiations. According to reports, the Social Democrats, Greens, and Left eventually threatened to withhold their consent to the MiCA draught if they did not get their way. Previously, SPD politician Joachim Schuster publicly advocated for a prohibition on bitcoin. Sven Giegold, a Green Party European politician, has also spoken out in support of the illegalization of BTC-ECHO.
Following the vote next Monday, there will be a trilogue between the EU Commission, the Parliament, and the member states. The trilogue will be at the conclusion of which the Commission will be tasked with evaluating the Parliament’s proposal. The decision should be made before the end of the year. The Commission opposed a bitcoin prohibition in the October 2020 draught.
German Finance Minister Christian Lindner declined to comment on the impending bitcoin prohibition. The new EU Parliament proposal, according to Frank Schäffler, member of the Bundestag’s Budget Committee, is “fatal.” Last year, he called for changes to the MiCA guidelines.
According to Robert Kopic of the industry association Blockchain for Europe, the clause has the potential to “put Europe at a disadvantage.” He explained this by saying “This is a point that would disadvantage Europe and its green miners, resulting in them migrating abroad and Europe losing geopolitical access to Bitcoin. As a result, the economic costs of a Bitcoin prohibition are obvious.” According to Stefan Berger, the EU Commission will consider this fact in its MiCA assessment. At this point, it is unclear what the final decision will look like.
