Switzerland; Heidi goes Crypto Nation

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Hi Steemians, while we keep waiting for a clear break above 10K from BTC, let's review the latest regulatory updates in the Crypto Space.

Since I live in this beautiful country, I update you on what the FINMA (Swiss Financial Authority) has announced today!*

As some of you may know we have here in the Canton of Zug, what is called the "Crypto Valley". Through a municipal fund many new projects were supported at a provincial level, but so far there were only some small steps on a federal one.

Zug was the start of a whole movement which is taking over the country, with many ICOs setting legal domicile in Switzerland due to its advanced economy and blockchain ecosystem. A great example is the Ethereum Stiftung, which was based in Switzerland until recently.

The FINMA as a financial regulatory body has embraced today a National stance on Cryptos by issuing its Guidelines on ICOs. While, many countries take an aggressive position (like China) or still doubtful (S. Korea), the Helvetic Nations position itself at the Vanguard by embracing the new start-up ecosystem.

Crypto Valley infographic source

FINMA Guidelines

I was telling many colleagues over here on how important would be to have a National position on Cryptos to help the dying Banking industry to have a revival. Still, we were not waiting for such a fast move on that.

To read the guidelines access here

As a summary of the main part, FINMA will review the function the underlying tokens will have from an economic point of view. Therefore it has created three distinctions, which have different regulatory outcomes, from no regulation to stricter supervision;

• Payment tokens are synonymous with cryptocurrencies and have no further functions or links to other development projects. Tokens may in some cases only develop the necessary functionality and become accepted as a means of payment over a period of time.
• Utility tokens are tokens which are intended to provide digital access to an application or service.
• Asset tokens represent assets such as participations in real physical underlyings, companies, or earnings streams, or an entitlement to dividends or interest payments. In terms of their economic function, the tokens are analogous to equities, bonds or derivatives.

The guidelines are quite clear, for now only Staking coins could be considered Asset Tokens, unless in the ICO there is a clear indication investors have a right to claim for future profits.

The move will help many ICOs in the foundation stage, or those considering a jurisdiction, to opt for Switzerland due to its explicit guidelines. While there is a complicated worldwide stance on cryptos, is good to have a developed economy to take such an advanced position that makes the path more accessible for many.

Next stage will be the results of the ICO government task-force, from which it is expected to have a pronunciation by the end of the year.

For investors, putting their money on Swiss companies will also give them an extra assurance, Anti-Money Laundering rules are one of the most strict worldwide, following international guidelines. Also, penalties are hefty for securities frauds.

On a personal level I am quite excited to see that this country is not following the FUDster approach others are taken, instead is setting a great precedent for others to follow. Blockchain and Cryptos are the core parts of the new Industrial revolution which is taking place. Countries should adapt to not stay behind in this race.

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