New regulatory definitions needed for digital assets -Circle CEO

By Divya Chowdhury and Lisa Pauline Mattackal

(Reuters) - Major markets such as the United States need new statutory definitions of digital assets to provide regulatory clarity for the sector, Jeremy Allaire, CEO of USDC stablecoin issuer Circle said on Monday.

Allaire said blockchain technology itself should be viewed similarly to an operating system, while individual use cases should be regulated separately.

"New definitions ... would help provide more clarity on which regulators are involved in what activity," Allaire told the Reuters Global Markets Forum on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum's annual meeting in Davos.

The European Union is leading in developing digital asset regulations, he said, with the region's Markets in Cryptoassets (MiCA) rules expected to come into effect in 2024.

"We're quite optimistic that MiCA will create the conditions for a thriving competitive market in the EU," Allaire said.

Circle plans to onshore its euro-backed stablecoin, which launched in 2021 from its U.S. entity, as MiCa is implemented, Allaire added, and the firm is planning to look at other potential digital currency offerings.

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(Reporting by Divya Chowdhury in Davos and Lisa Mattackal in Bengaluru; Additional reporting by Tom Wilson in London; editing by David Evans)