Germany 2.1t Bitcoinkahlbloomberg: Germany’s Federal Ministry of Finance has drafted a bill that, if passed, will allow institutional investors to hold up to 20% of their holdings in crypto assets like Bitcoin.
The reasoning behind this is that it aims to push innovation and investment in emerging technologies by facilitating the participation of big players. The new rules would also be beneficial for institutional investors who are currently hindered from investing due to a 2013 law which banned financial institutions from holding more than 1% of its assets in digital currencies.
Amidst such volatility, the German Ministry of Finance had previously tried to ban the use of Bitcoin as a currency in Germany, but since then has changed its attitude towards digital currencies.
According to official sources, the draft bill was presented for discussion among members of the German Parliament (Bundestag) and a decision regarding its implementation is expected within months.
There are a total of 196 funds in Germany with more than EUR 500 million in assets, according to the German Investment Protection Fund (DEGV), but their ability to invest in crypto assets is currently limited by existing laws.
The announcement of this draft bill is big news for the world’s fourth largest economy and indeed for the whole cryptosphere.
By becoming a crypto friendly country, Germany is set to attract more institutional investors, which are very important in the long term.
The new laws would also pave the way for more startups to raise money via ICOs and make investments in emerging technologies easier for institutional investors alike.
Now that Germany has made its position known regarding digital currencies, other countries will certainly take notice and may follow suit.
This is certainly good news for Bitcoin and the other cryptos, especially when we consider the fact that Germany is considered to be one of the biggest economies in Europe.
With such a big and powerful economy, it is not surprising that they are considering to make the switch to embracing digital currencies.
You can watch a live stream of Friday’s ‘live’ Bitcoin and altcoin discussion on Binance’s official Youtube channel here.
