Правове регулювання віртуальних активів у Федеративній Республіці Німеччина

Abstract

The article is devoted to the study of the current legal regulation of virtual assets in the Federal Republic of Germany. The author analyses the advantages and disadvantages of the relevant regulatory framework, decisions taken to harmonise legislation in accordance with the new Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council, as well as the possibility and expediency of implementing the most successful decisions into Ukrainian legislation. Due to the lack of relevant in-depth studies that would combine the main regulatory norms and definitions, as well as provide a general overview of this regulatory system, it became necessary to conduct a detailed study of the current regulatory framework of the Federal Republic of Germany in this area, which is one of the most complex among known jurisdictions in the field of virtual assets. The following list details the responsible regulators, as well as the legally established definition of virtual assets and their classification. The Federal Republic of Germany has developed an original classification system and a hybrid approach to defining asset categories in order to apply the provisions of MiCA. Currently, not all objects created on the basis of blockchain technology are subject to regulation, primarily non-fungible tokens, which is in line with MiCA provisions. The licensing system for service providers in the field of virtual asset circulation, the specifics of the transition period and the new classification of licence classes in accordance with MiCA were also examined. An analysis of the requirements for initial coin offerings (ICOs) in accordance with the regulatory framework of the Federal Republic of Germany and MiCA was conducted. The issues of virtual asset mining regulation and taxation were examined. It is concluded that the Federal Republic of Germany has found a way to regulate many more assets than provided for by MiCA, which gives competitive advantages to the national economy. Ukrainian legislation needs to borrow the approach to building such a regulatory system, which can be harmonised with European Union legislation, while preserving the advantages of its own legislation.