Hungarian government tightens up on crypto advisory
According to a new government regulation, crypto advisors must have at least one year of relevant professional experience in the financial, insurance or crypto sector.
On Wednesday evening, a new decree was published in the Magyar Közlöny – the official publication, which introduces the new legislations and decrees. It is setting stricter conditions for those providing advisory services on cryptocurrencies. In the future, advisors must have at least one year of experience in the crypto, financial or insurance industry. Whether crypto advice can be provided with that experience will be determined by the Hungarian National Bank (MNB).
It is important to note that under the new regulation, advisors must also have relevant qualifications. These include a higher education qualification in IT, economics or law, or a professional qualification in one of these fields. But it is also possible to provide advisory services on cryptocurrencies if, in addition to a secondary education, you have a specialised professional qualification. For example a professional certificate in investment products is also accepted.
The regulation will enter into force eight days after publication. So crypto advisors and their firms should be prepared for the changes.
„Bitcoin is extremely risky for consumers” – MNB is still not endorsing the cryptocurrencies
Despite the fact, that a supportive cryptocurrency draft law came to light at the beginning of the year, the central bank remains very cautious about cryptocurrencies and warns Hungarian citizens against their usage.
„The consumer risks associated with Bitcoin now became tangible in this country. The price of this digital payment instrument fluctuates unpredictably and the payment system operates without supervision, guarantees or compensation rules.” – says the MNB in a statement entitled „Bitcoin poses an extreme risk to consumers”.
In an another post, the Hungarian National Bank says that it does not recommend Hungarian consumers to buy BTC due to a lack of liability provisions:
„Cryptoassets are considered risky, even if they are linked to the official currency of one or more countries or to some other asset. In case of payment problems, abuse, theft and similar dishonest behaviour, consumers are not protected by deposit or investor protection guarantee institutions. In addition, there is also a lack of sector specific liability and damage provisions.”
Despite this restrained approach, the Hungarian crypto sector is growing. One of the best examples for this is the ongoing Bitcoin conference organized this weekend. The first Bitcoin conference in Hungary, the Bitcoin Miskolc takes place between 11 and 13 October in the city of Miskolc, eastern part of Hungary. On Friday, on the opening day more than 100 people attended the event.