The European Securities and Markets Authority is preparing to tighten its oversight of crypto-related transactions. As the agency’s primary responsibility is monitoring market participants, it is looking for suppliers of trading data.
The European Union’s securities watchdog ESMA is preparing to intensify its scrutiny of transactions involving cryptocurrencies. A public tender has been indicated. Reuters reported that the authority opened a tender process for suppliers of trading data regarding crypto transactions, including spot trades and derivatives.
After EU institutions endorsed a draft proposal to regulate digital assets, known as the Markets in Crypto Assets package ( MiCA), the move is now official. The legislation will allow smaller companies to be licensed by national regulators. However, ESMA will have the responsibility of overseeing larger players in the “Wild West”, as officials have described it. The regulator provided details in a notice.
To provide a fair representation, the coverage should include all major crypto assets and exchanges.
Further, the report notes that regulators around the globe use transaction data to identify market abuses and find out who is on the other side of a transaction. They also look for potential risky builds-ups of positions that could threaten the markets.
The announcement by ESMA stated that the data should be made available every day. The watchdog wants access to order books so it can see spreads and liquidity across trading pairs and exchanges in fiat and crypto. These services contract should not exceed EUR100,000.
The MiCA legislation names European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) as the leading cryptocurrency watchdog in the bloc of 27 nations. It has certain powers that are greater than those held by national regulators. ESMA will also be responsible for determining the scope of law regarding different crypto assets.
