Frankfurt, the financial capital of Germany, has been chosen as the headquarters for the European Union’s new Anti-Money Laundering Authority (AMLA). This oversight body, which will commence operations in mid-2025, will have the power to supervise high-risk and cross-border financial entities, including crypto firms. The AMLA will collaborate with financial intelligence units and regulators in other EU countries to coordinate its oversight activities.
The Council of the EU and the European Council announced Frankfurt as the selected city for the AMLA’s headquarters in a press release on February 22. It is worth noting that the European Central Bank is also situated in Frankfurt. Other cities such as Brussels, Dublin, Madrid, Paris, Rome, Riga, Vilnius, and Vienna were considered as alternative locations.
The general board of the AMLA will consist of representatives from regulators and financial intelligence units of all EU member states. Meanwhile, the executive board, known as the governing body, will include the chair and five independent full-time members.
In related news, despite the growing popularity of Bitcoin ETFs, the EU remains cautious about crypto investments. The CEO of VanEck Europe, a leading investment management firm, expressed skepticism regarding the EU’s stance on cryptocurrencies.
The Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA), the first comprehensive crypto framework in the EU, came into effect in June 2023. However, the application of regulations governing asset-referenced tokens and e-money tokens, which are largely classified as stablecoins, is expected to be implemented in June 2024. The rules for crypto-asset service providers, including trading platforms, wallet providers, and cryptocurrency exchanges and services, will come into effect in December 2024.
In addition to crypto regulations, the EU has been actively working on regulations for artificial intelligence (AI). The European Parliament’s Internal Market and Civil Liberties Committees recently approved the preliminary agreement on the European AI Act, the world’s first legislation specifically focused on AI. The EU AI Act aims to establish safeguards, such as copyright protection for creators, in response to generative AI models. It also prohibits AI applications that pose a threat to citizens’ rights, such as biometric categorization and social scoring. The first parliamentary vote on the AI Act is scheduled for April 2024.
Lastly, in an interview with a magazine, Vance Spencer, a prominent advocate for cryptocurrency, discussed his strong belief in the future of crypto and his commitment to investing in the industry.