For quite some time now, Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have been one of the frequently discussed topics among the regulators. This could be attributed to various reasons: rise in interest in cryptocurrencies, launch of Libra, and institutions venturing into the digital currency space. While some governments have made amends to regulate the wild west of Cryptocurrency, others have completely disregarded this sector.
So far, Malta has emerged as one of the leading hubs for the cryptocurrency and blockchain space, with some calling it the ‘Blockchain Island’. Even CEO of Binance, Changpeng Zhao stated that the team was “convinced that Malta will be the next hotbed for innovative blockchain companies, and a center of the blockchain ecosystem in Europe” as the firm had decided to shift its operations from Asia to the European Island country.
Since then, Malta has been taking several measures to become a crypto/ blockchain-friendly ecosystem. The latest step taken by the country’s officials includes signing a memorandum of understanding with other Southern European countries. According to a local news portal, Times Malta, seven countries signed an MoU in order to collaborate on emerging technologies including blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies.
The seven countries are noted to be Italy, Greece, Spain, Cyprus, France, Portugal and Malta. This decision was announced at the South EU Telecommunications Summit, which was held in Malta on 2nd October.
Notably, this is not the first step taken by these southern European countries. Previously, in December 2018, these southern European countries had signed a joint declaration of cooperation on blockchain technology. The announced had read,
“Following the Summits at Head of State Level, we view the digital sphere as an ideal policy area to embark on further cooperation. Together, we wish to reflect on our forward-looking vision to make Southern Europe a leader of emerging technologies, such as Distributed Ledger Technologies.”
