Comments and Petitions: How the BitLicense Will Affect the Future of Bitcoin
When Ben Lawsky and the NYDFS met with key players in the Bitcoin community earlier this year, there were many questions of what the committee would propose and how it would affect Bitcoin entrepreneurs, businesses and the future of the digital currency industry.
In a recent Coin Congress press release, President of the Digital Chamber Perianne Boring stated regarding the short comment period, “One egregious aspect is that the NYDFS is only giving 45 days to comment, which is severely inadequate to proposed regulations of this scope.”
The NYDFS proposal would require a “BitLicense” for any firm engaged in receiving or transmitting virtual currency on behalf of consumers; securing, storing, or maintaining custody or control of virtual currency on behalf of customers; performing retail conversion services; buying and selling virtual currency as a customer business; or controlling, administering, or issuing a virtual currency.
Holders of a BitLicense would be required to adhere to a set of rules and regulations meant to prevent illegal activities and protect virtual currency customers.
However, these proposed regulations, a word that the Bitcoin community often cringes at, will likely have adverse affects on continued innovation in the industry if the requirements remain the same.
Members of the Open Source Financial Developers Association (OSFDA) have begun a petition to the Governor and State legislature to bring attention to the overreach of the proposed BitLicense.
The petition was introduced because comments made by the community to the NYDFS are failing to address the Governor, who is responsible for appointing the superintendent of the NYDFS.
It is obvious that many individuals in digital currency communities believe that the proposed rules in New York will greatly affect the future of the industry. The hope is that the NYDFS will be open-minded, listen to the voices of the community and allow businesses in the industry to flourish.
Source: bitcoinmagazine
