29th November 2021 > > French regulation.

tl;dr

Binance and the French regulator are in harmony.

Market Snap

Market Wrap

That stock rally I was hoping to happen in the middle of the week is already under way. The power of quantitative easing (QE) to ensure the rich get richer is quite extraordinary.

In a surprising development off the back of the new COVID variant being given the name Omicron, the crypto Omicron (OMIC – a reserve currency protocol that hard forked off Wonderland) rallied from $65 on Saturday to a high this morning of $690, a gain of 960%.

Occasional Series – Hyperbole

This is a hyperbole free zone, as commended by the Society of Masklophobia, an affliction which largely affects the young who have been the most damaged by society’s overreaction to COVID.

Typical symptoms for an 8-year-old include heart palpitations, raised internal body temperature, and crying and screaming in response to a panic attack brought on by seeing someone in a mask.

Curious Cryptos’ Commentary – Regulation, Binance, and France working in harmony

Now there’s a headline I never expected to write.

…

Binance is one of my two go-to exchanges (the other being Coinbase Pro) but as the CCC has regularly pointed out, its adherence to corporate norms and oft vocalised stand against regulatory requirements reflects their CEO’s (“CZ”) immaturity and inexperience.

Appropriate regulation and legislation are fundamental to corporate adoption of cryptos. I have always failed to understand why Binance fights so hard against the one thing that can take their business to the next level. I guess they have been stuck in the old school thinking that leads people to endlessly repeat “not your keys, not your crypto”, a mantra that is now out of date.

Until now, Binance as a corporation has been proud to claim they have no head office.

With no head office, no sovereign authority will ever give you regulatory approval. Without that approval, your ambitions are strictly limited, and frankly, your time as a major player has a loud clock ticking down.

…

France has been losing the crypto race on several levels.

Germany has many crypto based exchange traded products (ETPs) available for retail and institutional investors. Admittedly, liquidity is not great, and the exchanges cannot compete with those of the UK and the US. But Germany has shown a willingness to embrace the tax dollars that will accrue from being a place where crypto innovation and development is welcomed.

True to form, the French political elite’s response to cryptos has been depressingly negative.

Convicted Criminal Christine Lagarde has stated her preference for “global regulation”. That is such a limited and narrow-minded view of the world. Get out and live a bit Lagarde, for your own benefit.

…

I have believed for a long time now that the crypto revolution will fundamentally change our world, even more than that internety thingy we came across a couple of decades ago.

Now I know I am right in that belief.

…

Binance has announced its intention to have a head office so that it can work with regulators to help develop the crypto business.

That’s a step change.

Even more surprising is that France is currently one of the leading contenders to host the new head office of Binance.

That’s a treble step change.

Francois Velleroy de Galhau, Governor of Banque de France (the central bank) had this to say:

“It’s a sign of the Paris market’s innovative dynamism, but this obviously depends on trust and credibility being guaranteed. That’s what will guide the ACPR and the AMF (financial markets authority) in their actions, especially on the key issue of anti-money laundering.”

Putting aside that the first nine words of that sentence were clearly spoken tongue in cheek, this is a remarkable development and full kudos to the Banque de France.

You see the power of cryptos? Even the French bureaucracy wants to be involved.

Vive la France!

…

Unfortunately for Francois and his compatriots, Ireland, one of the two largest tax havens in the world (the other being Liechtenstein) is also a leading contender to host the soon to be incorporated Binance head office.

I suspect that Ireland’s tax advantage will win out.