TechFlow news: Italian central bank governor Fabio Panetta said the Bank of Italy will release guidelines in the coming days on how to apply upcoming EU crypto regulations, aiming to promote effective implementation of the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) and protect cryptocurrency holders.
Panetta stated that MiCA categorizes tokens into Asset-Referenced Tokens (ART) and Electronic Money Tokens (EMT), with only EMTs fully capable of performing payment functions. He described Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) as "unbacked crypto assets" having no intrinsic value and likened them to gambling.
He also noted that the Italian government plans to strengthen oversight of the crypto market, with violations related to market manipulation or insider trading facing fines ranging from €5,000 to €5 million.
