New York Chief Regulator cuts Bitcoin startups some slack
ShareShareSharePrintMailGooglePinterestDiggRedditStumbleuponDeliciousBufferTumblr Unveiling a series of proposed new virtual currency regulations for New York state—which will likely be copied by other states and potentially federal regulators as well—Benjamin M. Lawsky, the superintendent of the New York State Department Of Financial Services, said that virtual currency startups need room to experiment and new proposals will grant them that slack.The proposal envisions “additional flexibility for virtual currency startups to innovate, while at the same time maintaining our commitment to protecting consumers and rooting out illicit activity,” Lawsky told attendees at the Bipartisan Policy Center on Regulating Virtual Currencies and Payments Technology in Washington, D.C., on Thursday (Dec. 18). “The revised regulation will offer a two-year transitional BitLicense, which may be issued to those firms who are unable to satisfy all of the requirements of a full license, and will be tailored to startups and small businesses. That transitional BitLicense will help provide start-ups an on-ramp as they build up their operations.”Among other key changes that Lawsky outlined:Developers Free To Code Away. “The revised regulation will clarify that we do not intend to regulate software development. For example, a software developer who creates and provides wallet software to customers for personal use will not need a license. We are regulating financial intermediaries. We are not regulating software development.”Rewards Won’t Be Punished. “Customer loyalty programs, rewards, and gift cards denominated in fiat currency will not fall under the BitLicense. Some commenters believed that the regulation could be read to encompass those activities, but it does not.” continue reading »