Europe’s landmark crypto bill passes parliamentary committee with wide majority

The EU’s Markets in Crypto Assets regulation, or MiCA, has advanced in the European Parliament.

European Parliament’s ECON Committee passed the MiCA regulation on March 14, per committee voting tallies shared with The Block. 

The final committee vote was 31 for, four against, and 23 abstentions, with the Green and Left parties showing the most opposition to the regulation while the European People’s Party and Renew Europe showing the greatest support. 

Earlier today, their motion to bring back provisions that would push proof-of-work mining out of the EU failed to pass the committee. 

Disputes over proof-of-work had delayed the committee votes from the end of February. 

MiCA’s rapporteur and the ECON Committee’s leader, Dr. Stefan Berger, tweeted that it was “a good day for the crypto sector.”

ECON-Ausschuss hat meinen #MiCA-Bericht angenommen. Ein guter Tag für den Krypto-Sektor! Das EU-Parlament hat den Weg geebnet für eine innovationsfreundliche Krypto-Regulierung, die weltweit Maßstäbe setzen kann. Der Prozess ist noch nicht vorbei; Schritte liegen noch vor uns /1

— Stefan Berger (@DrStefanBerger) March 14, 2022

Separate votes of 33 for and 25 against will move the regulation to trilogue debates to consolidate with the European Council and the European Commission. The regulation, which if passed, will be binding throughout the EU’s member states.