Gabrielle Patrick is a UK & US lawyer specializing in cryptofinance and distributed ledger (DL) technology. She is the co-founder and general counsel of Epiphyte, which enables instant settlement of trades and transactions using DLs.
In this feature, Patrick provides an on-the-ground look at a recent EU Parliament event that focused on digital currencies and blockchain tech. In an unprecedented move, the EU Parliament hosted a non-commercial roundtable on cryptocurrencies and blockchain last week. The purpose was to educate members (MEPs) on the world of blockchain technology and set the stage for future regulatory agendas.
Taking part were representatives from the EU Commission, the Bank for International Settlements, the World Bank, the United Nations, Europol, ESMA, the UK Treasury, the Bank of England, Nasdaq, as well as startups Blockchain and Epiphyte. The event was facilitated by the European Digital Currency & Blockchain Technology Forum, a public policy platform for virtual currencies and distributed ledger technology.
The tenor of the discussion was one of overwhelming support for the blockchain sector, with the expressed intent to not prematurely regulate or over regulate.
Conducted under Chatham House rules, an emphasis was placed on today being the best opportunity for descriptive – and not prescriptive – regulation, when we are moving from an analog world to a digital world and from siloed banking to networked banking.
The true discussion now is not really about the bitcoin blockchain or distributed ledger technology, but shared ledgers that allow interconnected financial services. Deep dive
The roundtables explored how cryptocurrencies have sparked an examination of the issuance of money itself and the structural instability of financial systems. Since monopolies rely on a lack of inter-connectivity and diversity of systems, they are structurally unstable – and cryptocurrencies can see the end of a 300-year old bank debt monopoly.
Epiphyte led the discussion […]
