Politics
- by Philippe Engels
- 6 posts
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This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum.
Author: Hilary Sutcliffe, Director, SocietyInside & Conrad von Kameke, Director, BioInnovators EuropeTo harness the power of new technologies for social good, the UN, governments, businesses and civil society groups are calling for new frameworks for global, national and local cooperation around technology development.
These may require a redesign of systems, new models, new skills and new mindsets to rise to the opportunities and challenges posed by the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR).
This will be tough for policymakers, businesses and for citizens – we humans don’t much like upheaval and change, particularly at the current speed and scale that seems unlikely to slow down.
So what should we consider when designing policy and governance to focus new technologies on the flourishing of people and the planet, without causing more problems than they solve?Remember – ‘tech is not like weather’
With the sheer pace of change, it is understandable that many feel technology development is out of control; like we’re strapped to a speeding train, trying desperately to figure out whether that’s a light at the end of the tunnel or another train coming to flatten us.
While technological advancement can be exciting, it can also be disempowering and unnerving, not least for policymakers, as tech appears to move faster than the capacity to steer or govern it. But the 2018 Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Romer urges us to remember that, “Technology is not like weather, it doesn’t just happen to us.
” He reminds us that technology is fundamentally under our control and “if we collectively set our minds to improving technology, we can improve it in a direction that seems to be important to us and at a faster rate”.
While there have been some significant technology mis-steps in recent times, there are also many examples where we are indeed “collectively setting our minds” to creating positive change and basing policy and tech development on human values.
Check out the uses of AI4good, or great stories on TechForGood, or even join people in your area bringing the Sustainable Development Goals to life in SDGsInAction.Make values and ethics central to policy and tech development
The vision of the WEF Global Future Council on Values, Ethics and Innovation is “to make it normal to discuss values and ethics and bring them to life in policy, investment, business and governance”.
It might seem obvious that the well-being of people and the sustainability of the planet would be at the core of these critical areas, which control every aspect of our lives. What seems almost bizarre, is that it is currently seen as “normal” to deliberately avoid these issues in many areas of policy and business as irrelevant at best, or even as inhibiting, in pursuit of narrow, mostly economic goals.
Discussing perhaps doesn’t feel purposeful enough. But psychology tells us that making something a normal topic of discussion is a massive first step in creating change.
If policymakers, governance designers as well as technology developers, and even researchers, started more often by discussing how they can work more closely with society to understand the values and ethics underpinning their work, that would be hopeful. If they then took the practical steps to embed these values even more in their policies, governance instruments, research projects and products, it would be transformative.
Again, there are signs of real hope. Global debates about the values and ethics of data use, artificial intelligence, robotics and gene-editing are omnipresent. There is no shortage of discussion and debate about how values can better influence policy and governance, R&D and product development – though only time will tell how effectively this is connected to real action and behaviour change.Join the dots – integration essential
The recent World Economic Forum white paper Values, Ethics and Innovation Rethinking Technological Development in the Fourth Industrial Revolution highlights the importance of a systemic approach to policy. One which explores where and how values and ethics can be integrated into policy, from education to funding, product design to governance.
The report outlines a compelling vision. It illustrates that only through a genuine joined-up approach, with new collaborations and partnerships between policy, academia, business and civil society working across the entire innovation ecosystem, can we begin to really influence priorities and actions at every level to help design the 4IR from the bottom up, as safer, more equitable, and more sustainable than those that went before.The First Empowerment Revolution
One of the defining characteristics of the 4IR is that citizens are no longer compliant and trusting of those with power. Many companies and policymakers are seeing a transformation brought about by social media and mobile technologies, where many more are able to express themselves directly and powerfully to challenge the status quo.
Perhaps what we are seeing is not just a Fourth Industrial Revolution, but a First Empowerment Revolution?
Vocal citizens across the globe are demanding that their views are listened and responded to, as can be observed from the Arab Spring to current political developments in the US and Europe.
But the reach of this phenomenon goes well beyond these examples. It also occurs in a more focused, 4IR-related context: think of employee opposition such as that of Google’s employees’ against the proposed censored search engine in China, or Microsoft employees’ concerns about AI being used for the US military.
A new, empowered, vocal society may be quite unnerving, particularly to those who are used to having a sense of control. It could feel anarchic, chaotic, worrying, difficult to know how to respond.
Our work exploring the roots of trust and distrust in technologies and governance sought to understand how other intractable disputes, such as peace negotiations, are conducted successfully.
There is a rich seam of knowledge yet to be explored, but three key factors appear paramount in designing successful collaborations from a base of potential conflict:- Process matters; it is through collaboratively designed, trustworthy processes that we will best be able to navigate the potentially conflicting priorities, difficult trade-offs and clashes of values that will be an inevitable part of navigating the complexities of the 4IR.
2. The smallest glimmer of shared values and a shared mission, which offer a connection to the greater good as well as everyone’s self-interest can move things forward into a space that didn’t exist before.
The Sustainable Development Goals provide us with much more than a glimmer of hope; they offer us a go-to agenda that can help shape technology to be more inclusive, responsive and focused on social and environmental good.
3. Processes that are designed to embed respect for each other and earn the trust of diverse parties, with evidence of that respect being clear to all.
Process matters; it is through collaboratively designed, trustworthy processes that we will best be able to navigate the potentially conflicting priorities, difficult trade-offs and clashes of values that will be an inevitable part of navigating the complexities of the 4IR.
It may not be easy, but creating a world in which people and planet flourish like never before is most certainly worth our utmost effort.-
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Francisco Gimeno - BC Analyst The already incoming tech revolution can produce a dystopia world if it doesn't lead to empowerment and is not anchored in human and ethical values. This is why is so important for all of us to get our hands on the collaborative design of a new society under the 4th IR.- 10 1 vote
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By Klaus Schwab
Founder and Executive Chairman, World Economic Forum
After World War II, the international community came together to build a shared future. Now, it must do so again. Owing to the slow and uneven recovery in the decade since the global financial crisis, a substantial part of society has become disaffected and embittered, not only with politics and politicians but also with globalization and the entire economic system it underpins.
In an era of widespread insecurity and frustration, populism has become increasingly attractive as an alternative to the status quo. But populist discourse elides – and often confounds – the substantive distinctions between two concepts: globalization and globalism.
Globalisation is a phenomenon driven by technology and the movement of ideas, people, and goods. Globalism is an ideology that prioritizes the neoliberal global order over national interests. Nobody can deny that we are living in a globalized world. But whether all of our policies should be “globalist” is highly debatable.
After all, this moment of crisis has raised important questions about our global-governance architecture. With more and more voters demanding to “take back control” from “global forces,” the challenge is to restore sovereignty in a world that requires cooperation.
Rather than closing off economies through protectionism and nationalist politics, we must forge a new social compact between citizens and their leaders, so that everyone feels secure enough at home to remain open to the world at large.
Failing that, the ongoing disintegration of our social fabric could ultimately lead to the collapse of democracy. Moreover, the challenges associated with the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) are coinciding with the rapid emergence of ecological constraints, the advent of an increasingly multipolar international order, and rising inequality.
These integrated developments are ushering in a new era of globalization. Whether it will improve the human condition will depend on whether corporate, local, national, and international governance can adapt in time.
Meanwhile, a new framework for global public-private cooperation has been taking shape. Public-private cooperation is about harnessing the private sector and open markets to drive economic growth for the public good, with environmental sustainability and social inclusiveness always in mind. But to determine the public good, we first must identify the root causes of inequality.
For example, while open markets and increased competition certainly produce winners and losers in the international arena, they may be having an even more pronounced effect on inequality at the national level. Moreover, the growing divide between the precariat and the privileged is being reinforced by 4IR business models, which often derive rents from owning capital or intellectual property.
Closing that divide requires us to recognise that we are living in a new type of innovation-driven economy and that new global norms, standards, policies, and conventions are needed to safeguard the public trust. The new economy has already disrupted and recombined countless industries and dislocated millions of workers. It is dematerializing production, by increasing the knowledge intensity of value creation.
It is heightening competition within domestic product, capital, and labour markets, as well as among countries adopting different trade and investment strategies. And it is fueling distrust, particularly of technology companies and their stewardship of our data.
The unprecedented pace of technological change means that our systems of health, transportation, communication, production, distribution, and energy – just to name a few – will be completely transformed. Managing that change will require not just new frameworks for national and multinational cooperation, but also a new model of education, complete with targeted programs for teaching workers new skills.
With advances in robotics and artificial intelligence in the context of ageing societies, we will have to move from a narrative of production and consumption toward one of sharing and caring.Globalisation 4.0 has only just begun, but we are already vastly underprepared for it. Clinging to an outdated mindset and tinkering with our existing processes and institutions will not do.
Rather, we need to redesign them from the ground up, so that we can capitalize on the new opportunities that await us while avoiding the kind of disruptions that we are witnessing today.
As we develop a new approach to the new economy, we must remember that we are not playing a zero-sum game. This is not a matter of free trade or protectionism, technology or jobs, immigration or protecting citizens, and growth or equality. Those are all false dichotomies, which we can avoid by developing policies that favour “and” over “or,” allowing all sets of interests to be pursued in parallel.
To be sure, pessimists will argue that political conditions are standing in the way of a productive global dialogue about Globalisation 4.0 and the new economy.
But realists will use the current moment to explore the gaps in the present system and to identify the requirements for a future approach. And optimists will hold out hope that future-oriented stakeholders will create a community of shared interest and, ultimately, shared purpose.
The changes that are underway today are not isolated to a particular country, industry, or issue. They are universal and thus require a global response. Failing to adopt a new cooperative approach would be a tragedy for humankind. To draft a blueprint for a shared global-governance architecture, we must avoid becoming mired in the current moment of crisis management.
Specifically, this task will require two things of the international community: wider engagement and heightened imagination. The engagement of all stakeholders in sustained dialogue will be crucial, as will the imagination to think systemically, and beyond one’s own short-term institutional and national considerations.
These will be the two organising principles of the World Economic Forum’s upcoming Annual Meeting in Davos-Klosters, which will convene under the theme of “Globalisation 4.0: Shaping a New Architecture in the Age of the Fourth Industrial Revolution”. Ready or not, a new world is upon us.-
Francisco Gimeno - BC Analyst Hear, hear! This reading says in few hundred words what all of this is about on the 4th IR and globalisation. All have to get prepared for the challenges which are already around us (not the future anymore). Even more amazing is that in times of disruption like these, new tech is coming to make the disruption healthy and a reason to create something new, based on humanness and a new relationship with nature and tech.
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From longer approval processes to the threat they might lose access to the European market, it's safe to say U.K. blockchain startups are looking for contingency plans.
A quick recap: in 2016, the U.K. held a referendum on whether to stay in the European Union (E.U.), with a majority of voters opting to leave the economic bloc. Since then, the government has been negotiating with E.U. officials on the terms of its exit – but recent hurdles have raised the specter of a "no-deal Brexit" that could lead to economic turbulence and uncertainty.
It's that uncertainty that has some blockchain startups sweating about their future prospects – at least in the months ahead as politicians attempt to hammer out an agreement.
"Brexit is a hindrance to everything in the short term," said Jamie McNaught, CEO and founder of Solidi Ltd, which is developing a blockchain-based payments platform that uses cryptocurrencies to facilitate money remittances.He told CoinDesk:"[It's] because all fintech regulation experts and lawyers are busy with so many things at the moment. They wouldn't be busy if the Brexit hasn't happened. In terms of just getting time with people is difficult at this moment. Will it (Brexit) be a hindrance in the mid-and-long term? That really depends on how successful the Brexit will be."
The startup is one of the four blockchain companies that were accepted by the U.K.'s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) for a normally six-month-long sandbox test in December 2017.Until this July, Solidi was still in the regulatory test, as "the whole thing is being held up by some of the requirement as to become regulated," McNaught said.What Solidi is waiting for is the approval of a money service business (MSB) license from HM Revenue & Customs, the U.K. authority that reviews anti-money laundering compliance.
Solidi has waited nine months to get approved for the MSB license, but the process previously took about five weeks, and the startup is not the only company in this position according to the FCA, McNaught said.Stormy horizon
To other blockchain firms who aren't facing that specific issue, the ramifications of a "hard Brexit" have become a big concern.Renat Khasanshyn, co-founder of Etherisc, a European firm offering decentralized insurance protocol, expects Brexit will create hurdles for users and developers of its protocol and, therefore, hamper client growth.
The company's platform allows providers to build insurance products on top of an open-source infrastructure. But if negotiations around Brexit falter, cross-border market testing will be much harder, and compliance costs for providers will increase, as Khasanshyn explained.
"The users of our protocol will be impacted by Brexit negatively because they will need to comply with regulations in the U.K. and the EU, which will likely go in different directions," Khasanshyn told CoinDesk. "And they will comply and pay for this compliance twice.
"For London-based blockchain startup Globacap, the biggest concern is likely to be the threat of the loss of passporting rights.
In its white paper on Brexit, the British government proposed new trade arrangements with the EU, suggesting the U.K. and the economic bloc maintain current agreements to trade goods but not services.Under the proposal, British financial services companies such as banks, insurers and asset managers risk losing their passporting rights - which grant them unconstrained access to other EU markets - when the U.K. formally exits the bloc next year.
Myles Milston, CEO and founder of Globacap, explained that "normally, once [we] become a fully authorized securities firm, we get passporting [rights] into the rest of the countries in the EU.""However, obviously with Brexit, we might not get that passporting right anymore," he went on to say. "So it doesn't actually affect the sandbox test, but it might affect our business model after the sandbox."Sunnier shores
Unless a deal is struck to extend market access – at least for a transition period – these firms will have to pay up to open new bases of operation in the EU or face a severe loss of market access.
Blockchain companies that provide payment or e-money services, therefore, anticipate unfavorable impacts on their businesses, with a number of firms contemplating to set up separate EU subsidiaries to avoid being blocked from the market altogether.
Globacap is another project participating in the FCA sandbox, within which it is working on the issuance of debt and equity securities on blockchain in the FCA's oversight.
As soon as the project goes through the test and is fully launched as a company, it plans to open an office in Europe and apply for regulatory clearance to avoid losing its passporting rights, Milston said.
"At the moment we are deciding where the best place is in Europe to start that," he added.Nivaura, a U.K.-based fintech company building an issuance and administration platform for securities, including tokenized securities, says its seeking approval from German regulators to open an office in the country.
"The passporting now takes about three months, and we can go anywhere," said Avtar Sehra, CEO and chief product architect for Nivaura."But if we have to go into Germany and set up a whole new business, there is a whole approval process. It could take from a year up to 18 months."Not all doom and gloom
Risks aside, not everyone that spoke to CoinDesk about the potential Brexit impact had a negative view of the situation.Richard Cohen, a U.K.-based lawyer at international law firm Allen & Overy, contended that Brexit would have little effect on the blockchain industry as a whole – in fact, he sees it as a potential positive for the country in terms of its approach to fintech.
"The U.K. will be allowed to come up with a regulatory framework that is much more favorable to fintech companies and become a friendly jurisdiction in which banks can make the best use of blockchain and global opportunities," Cohen argued.
Alastair Johnson, CEO of Nuggets, an e-commerce and payment ID platform, also struck a largely positive note, telling CoinDesk that his company has found the U.K. government to be a supportive partner.And its actions to date – particularly through the FCA, which has sought to include blockchain and distributed ledger startups within its sandbox cohorts – bear out that assertion"
The U.K. is very supportive at the potential of innovation in fintech and technology as a whole," Johnson said. "And I think they will also see that as an opportunity to create markets, continue growth and associate with Europe and the world as a whole. It's everything that driving the support.
"Cracked flag image via Shutterstock
The leader in blockchain news, CoinDesk is a media outlet that strives for the highest journalistic standards and abides by a strict set of editorial policies. CoinDesk is an independent operating subsidiary of Digital Currency Group, which invests in cryptocurrencies and blockchain startups.-
Francisco Gimeno - BC Analyst I don't really know what is going to happen during and after Brexit. This is like when Y2K was the all "doomer" issue around in 1999. There will be consequences. Some of them worse than others, and some could be better. The thing here is to be ready as soon as possible. Blockchain and cryptos have no borders, so surely the impact will be handled accordingly.
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The parliament of Malta has officially passed three bills into law establishing a ‘legal certainty’ for cryptocurrency businesses. The country’s policymakers approved their third and final reading on July 4.
‘FIRST TO PROVIDE LEGAL CERTAINTY’
A local media reported July 4 that the Parliament has approved three bills, essentially enacting them into laws. These are the Malta Digital Innovation Authority Act, the Innovative Technological Arrangement and Services Act, and the Virtual Financial Asset Act.
According to Silvio Schembri, Malta’s Junior Minister for Financial Services, the country is the first one to provide legal certainty to the cryptocurrency field.
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Silvio Schembri@SilvioSchembri
The 3 Bills that will regulate DLT have been approved by Parliament and enacted into law. Malta , the first world jurisdiction to provide legal certainty to this space. #blockchainisland @JosephMuscat_JM5:03 PM - Jul 4, 2018
Schembri also said that this move by the Maltese Parliament will facilitate investors as companies now have the necessary means to operate in a fully regulated environment. He also added that this will hopefully attract further investments in the country:I am optimistic that further companies will choose Malta to operate from with a system that offers stability and that will eventually result in further economic growth.
WHAT DO THE LAWS REGULATE?
Three bills have successfully passed the third and final reading in Parliament: The Virtual Financial Assets Act (VFA)Regulates Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs). It sets forth prerequisite steps that each project has to go through in order to be compliant. One of the interesting requirements is that each issuer needs to make his financial history public.
The Malta Digital Innovation Authority Act (MDIA)Stipulates the setup of an industry-specific body, governing the development as well as the implementation of certain guiding principles set forth in the Act. The newly formulated body will also have regulatory functions.
The body is to be known as the “Malta Digital Innovation Authority.”The Innovative Technology Arrangements and Services Act (ITASA)Defines blockchain-based enterprises and makes them recognizable in the eyes of the law. It is designated to serve as the basis for the operation of the previous two laws.STRENGTHENING ITS POSITIONS
Malta has successfully established itself as a country which advocates for widespread adoption of blockchain-based technology. Recently, a few cryptocurrency exchanges, including Binance, OKEx, and BitBay, set up operations on the island because of its progressive policymaking towards the field.
Part of the country’s overly positive sentiment towards the industry is represented by its Prime Minister. Joseph Muscat has been quite outspoken, stating that cryptocurrencies are the “inevitable future of money.”Once again, in what seems like an overly celebratory tweet following the recent legislative progress, Muscat has stated that the country aims to become a “global hub for market leaders in this new sector.”
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Joseph Muscat✔@JosephMuscat_JM#Malta officially the first country worldwide to have holistic legislative framework regulating #blockchain & #DLT technologies. We will be the #global hub for market leaders in this new sector. Now for the implementation of #BlockchainIsland -JM @SilvioSchembri5:15 PM - Jul 4, 2018
Do you think Malta is on the right way, regulating the cryptocurrency industry? Don’t hesitate to let us know in the comments below!-
Francisco Gimeno - BC Analyst Malta is reinventing itself after the 2008 crisis which strongly affected it. Traditional financial institutions closed or were closed accused of fraud then. Now, Malta has strongly bet to be among the first if not the first administration to have a holistic legislative framework regulation blockchain and DLT. By sure other countries will study these laws and how everything evolves there. We expect a bright future for Malta comparing with Bank of Finland which stated this week that cryptos are just a mirage.
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Recommended Report: EU Commission to extend EU blockchain and crowdfunding activ... (enterprisetimes.co.uk)The European Commission has unveiled an ‘Action Plan’ on how to harness the opportunities presented by technology-enabled innovation in financial services (FinTech).
Its wishes Europe to become a global hub for FinTech, with EU businesses and investors able to make most of the advantages offered by the Single Market (an objective not made easier by its largest financial hub, London, leaving in 2019).As a first deliverable, the Commission puts forward new rules to ‘help’ crowdfunding platforms grow across the EU’s single market.
The Action Plan seeks to enable the financial sector to make use of the rapid advances in new technologies, particularly blockchain, artificial intelligence and cloud services.
At the same time, it wants to make markets both safer and easier to access for new players to benefit consumers, investors, banks and new market players alike. In addition, the Commission proposes a pan-European label for platforms, so that a platform licensed in one country can operate across the EU.
“The Action Plan is part of the Commission’s efforts to build a Capital Markets Union (CMU) and a true single market for consumer financial services. It is also part of its drive to create a Digital Single Market.
The Commission aims to make EU rules more future-oriented and aligned with the rapid advance of technological development.”
Valdis DombrovskisValdis Dombrovskis, Vice-President responsible for Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets Union, said: “To compete globally, Europe’s innovative companies need access to capital, space to experiment and scale to grow.
This is the premise for our FinTech Action Plan. An EU crowdfunding licence would help crowdfunding platforms scale up in Europe. It will help them match investors and companies from all over the EU, giving more opportunities for firms and entrepreneurs to pitch their ideas to a wider base of funders.”The FinTech Action Plan
To the EU Commission the financial sector is the largest user of digital technologies and is a major driver in the digital transformation of the economy. Its Action Plan sets out 23 steps to:- enable innovative business models to scale up
- support the uptake of new technologies
- increase cybersecurity and the integrity of the financial system.
This will involve the Commission hosting an EU FinTech Laboratory. In this European and national authorities can engage with tech providers in a neutral, non-commercial space.There will also be the EU Blockchain Observatory and Forum which:- will report, in 2018, on the challenges and opportunities of crypto assets
- work on a comprehensive strategy for distributed ledger technology and blockchain that will address their relevance to all sectors of the EU economy.
The Commission asserts that it will consult on how best to promote the digitisation of information published by listed companies in Europe. This will consider how participants might use innovative technologies to interconnect national databases, thereby providing investors with easier access to key information to inform investment decisions.
The Commission says it will run workshops to improve information-sharing when it comes to cybersecurity.
Associated with this, the Commission will present a blueprint with best practices on regulatory sandboxes, based on guidance from European Supervisory Authorities. (A regulatory sandbox is a framework set up by regulators that allows FinTech startups and other innovators to conduct live experiments in a controlled environment, under a regulator’s supervision.
Regulatory sandboxes are gaining popularity, mostly in developed financial markets.)EU Blockchain Observatory and Forum
The Blockchain Observatory and Forum intends to:- highlight developments of blockchain technology
- promote European ‘actors’
- reinforce European engagement with multiple stakeholders involved in blockchain activities.
European innovators and entrepreneurs already offer blockchain-based solutions. Traditional industry sectors – like banks, insurance companies, stock exchanges, logistics and others – already invest in pilot projects. At the same time, individual EU member states are announcing their own initiatives to reinforce exploitation of blockchain technology.In this context, the European Commission plans to build on these existing initiatives.
One imperative is ensuring they (blockchain initiatives) can work across borders. This means consolidating expertise and addressing the challenges created by blockchains – such as disintermediation, trust, security and traceability by design.The EU Blockchain Observatory and Forum will:- gather information
- monitor and analyse trends
- address challenges
- explore blockchains’ socioeconomic potential.
It hopes to facilitate cross border cooperation on practical use cases as well bring Europe’s best experts together to promoting an open forum for:- blockchain technologists
- innovators
- citizens
- industry stakeholders
- public authorities
- regulators and supervisors.
The Commission has selected ConsenSys as its partner to support the Observatory’s outreach in Europe. As a participant in the blockchain community, the EU envisages ConsenSys bringing a strong commitment to blockchain development, solid expertise and connections with the global blockchain ecosystem, as well as an entrepreneurial approach to engage with stakeholders and experts in the EU and worldwide.
(Selection followed a call for tenders launched last year. ConsenSys will work in close cooperation with Commission services to run the EU Observatory and Forum, after having signed the contract on 29 January 2018.)Regulation on crowdfunding:
To the Commission, crowdfunding improves access to funding especially for start-ups and other small businesses. A start-up can present a project on an online platform and seek support in the form of a loan (‘peer-to-peer lending’) or equity participation.
At present it is difficult for platforms to expand across EU countries.
The Commission views this as an explanation of the underdeveloped nature of crowdfunding in the EU compared to elsewhere. The lack of common rules across the EU is a hurdle which:- raises compliance and operational costs
- prevents crowdfunding platforms from expanding across borders.
The Commission’s proposal will make it easier for platforms to offer services EU-wide and improve business access to this form of finance. If adopted by the European Parliament and the Council, the proposed Regulation will “allow platforms to apply for an EU label based on a single set of rules. This will enable them to offer their services across the EU.”Investors on crowdfunding platforms will be protected by:- clear rules on information disclosures
- rules on governance and risk management
- a coherent approach to supervision.
What does this mean
The mid-term review of the CMU Action Plan of June 2017 stressed the potential of FinTech to transform capital markets by:- introducing new market players and more efficient solutions
- increasing competition
- lowering costs for businesses and investors.
It announced the Commission would establish a comprehensive approach to enable FinTech and deepen and broaden EU capital markets by integrating the potential of digitisation. This Action Plan represents the next stage.As is common with EU Commission initiatives, the words are many and the timescales long – possibly too long for the fast moving FinTech environment.
The crowdfunding Regulation is welcome. Indeed, this alone may accelerate pan-European FinTech involvement – but only if the rules listed above arrive promptly.
The EU Blockchain Observatory and Forum sounds positive. It can be, but only if it does not fall victim to becoming a talking shop only.
EU Commission Action Plans sound great. They only deliver if there is action, which is not always the case. Enterprises should monitor, and even participate with care. The EU can suck much energy out of its contributors.
https://www.enterprisetimes.co.uk/2018/03/14/eu-commission-extend-eu-blockchain-and-crowdfunding-act...
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Francisco Gimeno - BC Analyst Well, the EU Commission is creating a FinTech Action Plan and a Blockchain Observatory and Forum to deal with the changes on FinTech and technology and regulate better crowdfunding. hoping this will be for positive and proactive action and not another bureaucratic regulatory body @Enterprise_Time
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Catalonia And The Blockchain
The eyes of the world are watching an autonomous region of Spain called Catalonia fight for its right to be a sovereign nation. Could the technology behind the cryptocurrency revolution play a role in helping to keep voters safe?
By Jordan Daniell
October 3, 2017
ETHNews.com
On October 1, 2017, over 2 million Catalonians voted in favor of seceding from Spain and becoming an independent nation. The Spanish government, which had previously stated that holding any such referendum would be illegal, responded in a show of force that leading news organizations have reported as “disproportionate.
” Images of riot-armor-clad police using brutal tactics to break up flashpoints, like voting locations, have saturated global media.
Spain’s Prime Minister, Mariano Rajoy, has denied that the referendum vote took place, although he praised the police crackdown, stating “Today, all the Spaniards have seen that our state rule of law keeps its strength and reality, and restricts those who wish to subvert the state of law, and acts with all the legal resources, vis a vis all provocations, and does it with efficacy and in a serene way.
” Catalonia’s President, Carles Puigdemont, in a televised address, stated: “On this day of hope and suffering, Catalonia’s citizens have earned the right to have an independent state in the form of a republic.
”The brutality of the Spanish government’s response is drawing international condemnation. Notably, the United Nations high commissioner for human rights, Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein, stated:“I am very disturbed by the violence in Catalonia on Sunday. With hundreds of people reported injured, I urge the Spanish authorities to ensure thorough, independent and impartial investigations into all acts of violence. Police responses must at all times be proportionate and necessary.
I firmly believe that the current situation should be resolved through political dialogue, with full respect for democratic freedoms. I call on the Government of Spain to accept without delay the requests by relevant UN human rights experts to visit.”
The Problem
Catalonia, which has an economy roughly the size of Finland or Portugal, is situated in northeastern Spain and is generally known for the Mediterranean beach resorts of Costa Brava, the Pyrenees Mountains, and the city of Barcelona.
The region is home to 7.5 million people and has maintained its own distinct traditions, language (Catalan), and culture. Spanish nationalists would argue that Catalonia is a Spanish province, while Catalans fervently maintain their separate identity dates back to the 13th century.
Both sides use history to buttress their arguments, and the truth will have to be ironed out by diplomats and lawyers. Until that time, the violent disputes surrounding Catalonian referendums could be afforded a measure of transparency by a technology familiar to many in Catalonia.
In times when the truth is made out to be relative, being able to trust the data is key. The blockchain can be the solution for 2 main reasons.
Reason #1: Controlling Information
Blockchain technologies, like those built on Ethereum, provide a means of sidestepping the Spanish government’s ability to control the flow of information through cyberspace.
This allows for people to organize more efficiently and present a more united opposition. Coordinating times, dates, and locations are important to any movement that relies on mass numbers for success.
Blockchain technology can keep the lines of communication open by combating censorship of the internet. Moreover, the information on a blockchain is decentralized.
This means that physical voting booths could be replaced with software, and voting could be performed remotely, thereby removing the need to congregate together, which presents a target for oppressive governments.
Reason #2: Trusting The Data
The blockchain provides a trustworthy means of cutting through the culturally charged history behind the Catalan struggle for independence by exposing the raw social data behind the movement. In this regard, blockchain technology can be thought of as a tactical tool that enhances democracy.
The data stored on a blockchain can be broken down and verified, mathematically, as accurate. This removes the ability to refute election results or manipulate data to support unfounded conclusions or biased history.
Votes could be counted in a matter of seconds and the results could be shared across the world immediately. Not being able to argue with the data removes the layers of biased abstraction surrounding cultural disputes like the one in Catalonia.
A blockchain-enabled voting system would require the government of Spain to acknowledge the vote by 2.3 million people, instead of trying to rewrite history as it is happening.
JORDAN DANIELL
Jordan Daniell is a writer living in Los Angeles. He brings a decade of business intelligence experience, researching emerging technologies, to bear in reporting on blockchain and Ethereum developments. He is passionate about blockchain technologies and believes they will fundamentally shape the future. Jordan is a full-time staff writer for ETHNews.
Discover more stories on Ethnews here: https://www.ethnews.com/catalonia-and-the-blockchain
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Francisco Gimeno - BC Analyst While I agree with the future use of Blockchain for voting, I would say the author has to learn a little more about history of Spain. We are living in a society in turmoil and change where the reality and the fake is mixed in a such way that the more emotional looks like the more real. In this article the Spanish government is accused of rewriting history as it is happening.... kind of weird to say that.... Blockchain is a tool and I hope will be very useful to clear the atmosphere of fake news, fake numbers, and corruption styles. Let´s work for it.
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