Law on virtual assets should be supplemented with rules on investor protection – expert

KYIV. Sept 21 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The law on virtual assets needs to be finalized during the period provided for its entry into force, in particular regarding greater protection of investors, Yuriy Boiko, a member of the National Securities and Stock Market Commission, has said.

"The law is still uncoordinated, many points in it are given for the creation, development of additional regulatory documents that will regulate this market: the creation of a state policy, a special body, a procedure for issuing licenses, and so on," Boiko said at a roundtable devoted to legalization virtual, opportunities and risks organized by the Gorshenin Institute with the support of the Internet portal LB.ua on Tuesday.

In his opinion, it is necessary to prescribe equal conditions for each of the market participants and protect investors. How the regulatory arbitration will be structured is still an open question, the member of the National Securities and Stock Market Commission said.

He said that the development and adoption of bylaws will save the market and its participants from many risks, in particular from the risk of financial manipulations under the guise of virtual assets, when funds will be used for other than their intended purpose.

Boiko also called for the synchronized work of market regulators, including the National Bank of Ukraine and the National Securities and Stock Market Commission. "We have a great responsibility for how to implement this. The law is not a panacea yet, many points need to be written out in the normative documents," the member of the commission said.

He recalled that licenses to work with virtual assets will be issued by a new body specially created by the government.

"There are "blind spots" that need to be started to work on today, and changes should be made in a few months. It is not yet clear how long it will take to develop a bill on amendments to tax legislation," he said.