MiCA can ‘serve as a model’ for US crypto regulation, SEC’s Peirce says

The European Union’s flagship Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) regulation can serve as a model for crypto rules in the U.S., according to Hester Peirce, a commissioner at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

“MiCA can serve as a model for us,” Pierce said on a panel at the Financial Times Crypto and Digital Assets Summit in London, adding that the UK’s regulatory approach could also be mined for inspiration.

“I share with you the approach of telling people ‘look, there are risks here, you can choose to opt into those risks or opt out.’ And then trying to figure out a regulatory model that allows for innovation,” said Peirce, a Republican commissioner who regularly disagrees with the approach of SEC Chair Gary Gensler.

The EU officially passed MiCA last month, expressing hope that the rules will become a "global standard-setter" and a magnet for digital asset businesses. The regulation focuses on the centralized points of the crypto industry and provides clarity over the scope and definitions of crypto regulation. A firm that has a license in one EU member state will be given access to the whole EU market. 

MiCA wins praise from CZ

The European rules have won praise from leaders in the crypto industry, including Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao and Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong. 

“If we built a good regulatory regime, people would come,” Peirce said earlier in the panel. “We’re shooting ourselves in the foot by not having a good regulatory regime in the U.S.”

However, she concluded that she's "not very optimistic about the regulatory system” in the U.S. offering clarity anytime soon.