Crypto rules to make Europe a global leader as prices plunge

By KELVIN CHAN
AP Business Writer

LONDON (AP) — Europe has moved to lead the world in regulating the freewheeling cryptocurrency industry at a time when prices have plunged, wiping out fortunes, fueling skepticism and sparking calls for tighter scrutiny. European Union negotiators hammered out the final details for a provisional agreement late Thursday on a sweeping package of crypto regulations for the bloc’s 27 nations, known as Markets in Crypto Assets, or MiCA. The rules include measures to address the carbon footprint for energy-guzzling bitcoin mining but exempted NFTs. Like the EU’s data privacy policy that became the de facto global standard, the crypto regulations are expected to be highly influential worldwide.