The country’s financial regulator AMF stated on Thursday that France has modified its registration requirements for cryptocurrency firms to more closely match the new regulations for the industry adopted by the European Union.
The recently finalised Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) law, which is expected to go into effect in 12 to 18 months and apply to digital assets and businesses wishing to serve the EU market, is being prepared for implementation by EU member states. France has been courting businesses to register there despite the fact that the country now has a full licencing structure for cryptocurrency enterprises that needs to be modified to conform with MiCA.
The “enhanced” registration rules are expected to go into effect on January 1, 2024, and “new players” who want to offer any regulated services would have to comply with them, according to the AMF. For businesses that have previously been operating in the nation with approval, the revisions will also “allow a fast track procedure to be implemented towards” authorization.
“As a reminder, DASPs that obtained a simple registration before Jan. 1, 2024 benefit from a “grandfather” clause and continue to be subject to the framework applicable before this date,” the regulator stated.
The AMF General Regulation has been modified to include provisions for providers of digital asset services, including “security and internal control systems, systems for managing conflicts of interest, clear, accurate, and non-misleading information, public pricing policies, specific custody provisions (segregation of client assets vs. own assets),” and a prohibition on using client assets without the client’s express prior consent.
Societe Generale’s crypto subsidiary recently received the AMF’s first cryptocurrency licence. The regulator has registered companies like Binance and Hex Trust.