Cryptos Fall as EU Regulators to Look at ICO Cases

Investing.com - Cryptocurrencies fell on Tuesday, as the European Union’s securities watchdog said it would examine every initial coin offering to determine if it should be regulated.

Bitcoin fell 0.64% to $6,629.50 on the Bitfinex exchange as of 9:01 AM ET (13:01 GMT).

Cryptocurrencies overall were lower, with the total coin market capitalization at $218 billion at the time of writing, compared to $221 billion on Monday.

Ethereum,or Ether, decreased 1.06% to $227.50 and Litecoin was at $58.824, down 0.60% while XRP slipped 3.81% to $0.47771.

The European Securities and Markets Authority announced late on Monday that it would be taking a look at each ICO to see how and if they fit into current regulation.

An ICO is a token like Bitcoin that is issued to raise funds for small companies. Regulators around the world have cautioned against consumers investing in ICOs as bitcoin and other digital coins grow in popularity.

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission head Jay Clayton said in February that ICOs should be considered securities, but has not classified them as such. In the EU, regulators have so far just issued a warning to retail investors.

“Some of these ICOs are like a financial instrument. Once it is a financial instrument it comes under a whole regulatory framework,” Steven Maijoor, chair of the ESMA, said at a European Parliament economic affairs committee.

“The subsequent question is what do we do with those ICOs that are outside the regulatory world. We will assess that as a board. We expect to report by the end of the year,” he added.

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