The EU plans to expand the regulatory and enforcement powers of the European Securities and Markets Authority, involving crypto companies and pan-European market operators.

PANews, December 4—According to Bloomberg, the EU executive body has announced plans to transfer more regulatory and enforcement powers to its market supervisory authority, sparking debate among national regulators about ceding authority to Brussels. The proposal, published on Thursday, shows that the Paris-based European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) will gain new powers over significant clearinghouses, central securities depositories, and trading venues. Less than a year after introducing a national regulatory regime for cryptocurrency companies, the EU is now bringing both these companies and pan-European market operators under ESMA’s jurisdiction. The centralization of most market regulatory powers in the EU requires approval from the European Parliament and the Council of Member States, with some member states strongly opposed.

The core of the proposal is to strengthen ESMA’s powers and resources, establishing a board of directors consisting of five independent members with terms of up to five years. Preparation costs will be covered by the EU budget, while ongoing expenses will be borne by trading venues, central securities depositories, and crypto asset service providers. To streamline European market operations, the European Commission will also revise legislation to limit member states from imposing additional requirements on securities issuers, simplify the licensing process to improve cross-border central securities depository services, and aims to integrate distributed ledger technology into the rulebook. Negotiations on this package of measures will begin in January next year, when Cyprus will take over the rotating presidency of the EU Council.