Despite the turbulence that broke out in the crypto market this summer, there is an important long-term marker that should be considered in any comple
Despite the turbulence that broke out in the crypto market this summer, there is an important long-term marker that should be considered in any complex assessment — the combination of adoption and regulation. The latest report by EUBlockchain Observatory, named “EU Blockchain Ecosystem Developments,” tries to measure this combination within the European Union, combining the data on each and every member country from Portugal to Slovakia.
As the original report counts more than 200 pages, Cointelegraph prepared a summary with the intent to capture the most vital information about the state of crypto and blockchain in Europe. Previously we’ve covered Western and Northern Europe, but this cycle finishes with the Southern Europe region.
Greece
Numbers: Over 10 blockchain solution providers.
Regulation and legislation: According to the report, “blockchain, along with their derivative cryptocurrencies as well as alternative forms of blockchain financing, remain largely unregulated in Greece.” In 2022, Greece announced a draft bill on “emerging information and communication technologies, strengthening digital governance and other provisions,” introducing requirements for the deployment of artificial intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT), blockchain and other distributed ledger technology (DLT). Virtual asset providers are required to register with the Hellenic Capital Markets Commission (HCMC).
Taxes: The income that arises from cryptocurrency transactions is taxed under the capital gains tax, which constitutes 15% for individuals.
Notable initiatives: HCMC and the Bank of Greece have both implemented their own Innovation Hub, while the latter launched a regulatory sandbox in collaboration with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.
Local players: Mobiweb Technologies, an offshore web development company; Synaphea, a provider of blockchain solutions to business; Metabloq, a blockchain-based software developer.
Italy
Numbers: $46.5 million (47 million euros) in total funds raised by blockchain projects, 97 blockchain startups.
Regulation and legislation: In 2019, the Italian Parliament approved a definition for DLTs and recognized the legal validity of smart contracts.
Taxes: In 2016, the Revenue Agency issued a ministerial resolution that addressed certain aspects of the tax treatment of Bitcoin (BTC) and other cryptocurrencies. In accordance with that resolution, an individual’s income from exchanging crypto isn’t subject to taxation. However, if the individual’s account balance exceeds 51,645.69 euros (about $51,000), they are subject to capital gains tax, which constitutes a flat 26% rate.
Notable initiatives: Since 2015, the Ministry of Economy and Finance has launched two pilot projects to test DLTs in public administration. The first one was SUNFISH (Secure Information Sharing in federated heterogeneous private clouds), which used smart contracts on a blockchain infrastructure to ensure integrity and secrecy in the exchange of information between the Ministry of Economy and Finance and the State Police. The second one was PoSeID-on, a platform for personal data management and data protection.
In 2017, the Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies launched Wine Supply Chain 4.0, a pilot project enhancing the traceability of the wine supply chain.
In 2019, the Ministry of Economic Development partnered with IBM to test a platform based on the private permissioned infrastructure of IBM Hyperledger Fabric to provide a solution for stakeholders in the textile supply chain.
Local players: Volvero, a blockchain-based car-sharing app; EvenFi, a regulated peer-to-peer crowdlending platform; EcoSteer, an IoT and blockchain software company.
Malta
Numbers: $139.5 million (141 million euros) of total funds raised.
Regulation and legislation: In 2018, the Maltese parliament enacted three laws establishing a comprehensive regulatory framework for blockchain and digital currencies. The Virtual Financial Assets Act regulates the field of initial coin offerings, digital assets, digital currencies and related services, while the Innovative Technological Arrangements and Services Act enables the Malta Digital Innovation Authority to oversee the registration of technology service providers.
The country’s financial regulatory framework recognizes four distinct categories of digital assets, subject to a different set of rules: electronic money, financial instruments, virtual (utility) tokens and virtual financial assets (VFAs).
Taxes: Electronic money and utility tokens are not on the list of capital assets in the Income Tax Act and are thus not subject to capital gains tax, while securities and VFAs are.
Notable initiatives: Malta was the first country to install a blockchain-based IP register and transfer 60,000 records using the blockchain network. Following that, the government of Malta launched three new blockchain projects: a project for the certification of food products…
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