Who Regulates Cryptocurrency?

The cryptocurrency market was valued at a staggering US$ 1.78 trillion in 2021 and this number is expected to continue to grow in the future. The growth in the crypto markets coupled with its increasing traction amongst investors around the world has caught the attention of regulators. So is crypto regulated? And if so, who regulates the space?

What Is Cryptocurrency?

Cryptocurrency is a digital currency that is designed to allow individuals and/or organizations to facilitate transactions with one another without being reliant on any central authority. Bitcoin and Ethereum are currently the two biggest cryptos by market capitalization. Bitcoin was founded in 2009 by Satoshi Nakamoto while Ethereum was founded by Vitalik Buterin and launched back in 2013.

Beyond Bitcoin and Ethereum, there are over 20,000 cryptocurrencies as of July 2022. The number of cryptocurrencies doubled from 2021 to 2022 and by the end of 2021, the crypto market was adding around 1000 new cryptocurrencies every month. Crypto is not just gaining traction amongst individuals but companies and organizations as well. Some of the biggest companies in the world such as Microsoft and PayPal have already adopted crypto in their business.

Is Crypto Regulated?

Many countries around the world have started making moves towards regulating the crypto sector. For example, a lawsuit was brought against Ripple in 2020 for unregistered securities transactions, after it raised more than $1.3 billion from its native token, XRP. It is not just in the United States that there are increasing calls to regulate the crypto markets. Countries such as South Korea, Singapore and Canada have all weighed in on having more regulations in the crypto markets in recent times.

While the usage of crypto in many countries is not illegal, the classification of it differs from country to country and thus there are different regulatory implications.

Who Regulates Crypto?

There are currently no international regulations regarding cryptocurrency. Instead, countries usually have their own governing bodies and frameworks to regulate the space. These governing bodies typically also govern the traditional financial markets. The United States has its Security and Exchange Commission (SEC), Canada has its Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA), Singapore has the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and so on.

The growth of the crypto markets has naturally attracted the attention of countries and their regulatory bodies, especially on the back of the recent implosion of the Terra Luna ecosystem which left many investors holding the bag. As the crypto industry continues to grow, we can expect further regulations in the space.

Disclaimer: This material is for information purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Flipster makes no recommendations or guarantees in respect of any digital asset, product, or service. Trading digital assets and digital asset derivatives comes with significant risk of loss due to its high price volatility, and is not suitable for all investors.