A long 10vor10 segment about Bitcoin. Well done.
Marc Faber points readers to Bitcoin
Swiss investment guru Marc Faber publishes a monthly market commentary. Along with the June commentary, he sent his subscribers a report on Bitcoin, titled "Dispelling the Myths of Bitcoin" and written by Lee Robinson from Atlana wealth. I already was in contact with Faber last autumn suggesting that he should send my report on Bitcoin to his readers - which he unfortunately did not even though he indicated interest. The report he finally attached is an interesting read, containing an excellent collection of quotes (e.g. "Every informed person needs to know about Bitcoin because it might be one of the world’s most important developments." by Nobel price winner Leon Louw) and showing various charts copied from the internet (e.g. this Bitcoin Ecosystem Snapshot). It lists three scenarios and attaches long-term values between 5'714 USD and 119'000 USD per Bitcoin. For the latter, the author randomly assumes that Bitcoin can capture 1% of the global money supply - not a very profound analysis. Nevertheless, I find it notable that Marc Faber finally decided to inform his readers about Bitcoin (without endorsing it). It is a symptom of raising awareness among investors and a good sign for the future.
𝗦𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝟭𝟮-𝗣𝗼𝗶𝗻𝘁 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗮 𝗙𝗼𝗿𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱-𝗟𝗼𝗼𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗗𝗶𝗴𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗖𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿
The Bitcoin Association Switzerland supports the 12-point program jointly developed by leading industry associations to foster a strong and future-oriented environment for digital innovation in Switzerland. We believe this framework is an important step toward ensuring regulatory clarity, technological advancement, and an open, competitive financial system that empowers individuals and businesses alike.
Bitcoin Association Switzerland Welcomes the Federal Council's Endorsement of Enhanced Bitcoin Regulation
The Bitcoin Association Switzerland, in collaboration with key stakeholders such as the Swiss Blockchain Federation, welcomes the Federal Council’s acceptance of a motion and the positive answer to an interpellation introduced by National Councilor Benjamin Fischer. This development marks a significant step forward in enhancing regulatory clarity for Bitcoin and digital assets in Switzerland.
Bitcoin Association Switzerland appoints new board, sets bold vision for the future
Bitcoin Association Switzerland (BAS) is proud to announce the appointment of a new board, marking a fresh chapter in its long-standing commitment to Bitcoin advocacy and innovation. Founded in 2013, BAS has a rich history of being at the forefront of global Bitcoin adoption. As one of the earliest Bitcoin associations, it played a pivotal role in positioning Switzerland as a global leader in Bitcoin and Blockchain technology.
Announcement from the Board of the Bitcoin Association Switzerland
Prudential Treatment of Cryptoasset Exposures II
While the Bank for International Settlement / Basel Committee on Banking Supervision continues to propose regulation, they also have developed a habit of not addressing legitimate concerns from the community. That is highly regrettable, but no reason to throw in the towel. So the Bitcoin Association Switzerland continues to provide constructive feedback and - so we think - well argued suggestions on how to improve on the longterm goals of the BIS to make the space safer and allow for more innovation.
The letter we sent out this week is continuing this tradition.
Prudential Treatment of Cryptoasset Exposures
The Bank for International Settlement (BIS) has recently published a consultative paper on the Prudential Treatment of Crytpoasset Exposure. Being good citizens, we were happy to follow the BIS’ call for a response to their proposals with constructive feedback that not only points out where they err, but more importantly how some of the proposed principals will prove detrimental to the stability of the financial system they BIS is trying to protect. Never has a proverb being more fitting than this: the path to hell is paved with good intentions.
Comments of Bitcoin Association Switzerland on the draft revised VASP Guidance
The Bitcoin Association Switzerland has sent a comment on the FATF's revised draft guidance on crypto assets. In a consciously "expansive" approach, the FATF proposes to classify participants in decentralized systems as financial intermediaries even if they do not engage in financial intermediation. This would erode the benefits of disintermediation and cause great harm to the nascent sector of Decentralized Finance (DeFi). We criticize this approach and suggest a number of measures to contain the potential damage of imprudent regulation.
Our Comment on the risk assessment for global Stablecoins of the G20‘s Financial Stability Board
Today we sent the following letter to the Financial Stability Board of the G-20 commenting on their risk assessment for "global stablecoins":
Our Comment on GWV-FINMA adjustment for FinSA / FinIA
Our Comment on “Designing a prudential treatment for cryptoassets” of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision
In December 2019 the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision published a discussion paper on the design of a prudential treatment for crypto-assets and welcomed comments on its analyses and ideas. The comment submitted by the Bitcoin Association Switzerland are the following…
Crypto Valley Association Issues Questionable Recommendations
While the Crypto Valley Association’s paper on “[Asset Tokenization](https://cryptovalley.swiss/wp-content/uploads/CVA-Asset-Tokenization-Paper-final-version-FDU.pdf)” contains many insightful sections, there are other sections that get some fundamental legal considerations embarrassingly wrong. Further questionable is a piece of advice that could make an issued token incompatible with the law. In this blog post, we shed light on the three biggest blunders of the paper.
Our Comment on the Swiss Blockchain Law
In March, the Federal Council presented a draft for a number of legal adjustments and invited Bitcoin Association Switzerland to take part in the public consultation. The consultation phase ends this month and we have filed an extensive comment, in which we support the position of the Swiss Blockchain Federationand lay out some of our common concerns in more detail. In this blog post, I will summarize the content of the proposed law as well as the comments of both Blockchain Federation and Bitcoin Association.
On the Federal Council Report
The federal council published its 170-page report on the legal foundations of the blockchain in Switzerland. It incorporates the findings of the consultation that took place in September and to which the Bitcoin Association also provided some inputs. All in all, it is great that the Swiss government not only recognizes the potential of the blockchain, but also applies the right strategy for allowing the blockchain-ecosystem to flourish.
Is the Ethereum system a legal subject?
There are some hints that abstract systems like Ethereum should legally be treated like their own entities. The latest such hints comes from the context of value-added tax (VAT or MWST in German), where the taxation of transaction fees is practically impossible when trying to find a taxable relationship between miners and users.
Why storing Bitcoins for clients does not make you a bank
Bitcoin Association Switzerland 2018: General Assembly
The Bitcoin scene in Switzerland has been strong since Mike Hearn, former Bitcoin developer and author of Bitcoinj, organized the first local Bitcoin meetup in February 2011. Over the years we have grown from a handful of people to over 5’500 Bitcoiners, making Switzerland home to one of the biggest Bitcoin communities in the world.
Better legal protection for clients of Bitcoin firms coming?
Marcel Dobler, member of the Swiss national parliament and co-founder of digitec.ch, proposed a law that could turn out to be very helpful for Crypto Nation Switzerland. It would give you the right to get your digital assets back in case you have stored them with a provider that goes bankrupt.
