Germany’s top regulator calls for global regulation of cryptocurrencies

Mark Branson, president of BaFin. Image: Arne Dedert/picture alliance via Getty Images

Germany’s top regulator has called for global regulation of the cryptocurrency industry. It did this to prevent money laundering, protect consumers and maintain financial stability. The massive collapse of the FTX empire has alarmed regulators even more. Lawmakers are working to implement effective and efficient regulation of cryptocurrencies. Mark Branson, the chairman of Germany’s financial regulatory body, the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin), agrees.


He believes a hands-off approach that “just grows the industry like an adult playground” is the wrong strategy. He is the chairman of BaFin, the German financial market regulator. He believes that a “cryptographic spring” can follow a “cryptographic winter”. However, the cryptocurrency springtime will eventually tie into the traditional financial system, increasing the need for regulation, according to Branson.

He said: “Now is the time for serious regulation of cryptocurrencies… The most important point is that it doesn’t just need a European solution. It needs a worldwide solution.”