The cryptocurrency industry is fast gaining ground, and the European Banking Authority (EBA) is concerned that they might be left behind following the lack of crypto experts in the industry. On the 27th of July, José Manuel Campa, the president of the European Banking Authority (EBA), stated that he was “concerned” that the EBA could not comply with the regulations ordered by the MiCA due to the lack of qualified cryptocurrency experts.
Campa said there is high demand for specialized personnel in technology and cryptocurrency in Europe, so it is quite difficult for the EBA to hire specialized staff to meet the requirements of the new job opportunities.
The European financial crisis necessitated the inception of the EBA to ensure that European banks had enough capital to face economic problems. As the crypto ecosystem grew, EBA’s functions included supervising some stablecoins and cryptocurrencies used in Europe as a means of payment.
Campa also stated that the EBA is concerned about the dynamics of the cryptocurrency industry, following the logistics of planning to correctly exercise its new powers because though it is nearly 3 years away from knowing the exact digital currencies the EBA will oversee, a lot can change in the crypto ecosystem during that time.
He said, “My concern is more about making sure the risk we have identified . . . [in the crypto market] is properly managed. If we don’t do as well as we should have, we’ll have to live with the consequences,”
On the other hand, Campa was optimistic about the global macro scenario, noting that a financial crisis in Europe is unlikely to happen, at least in the “short term,” despite the region’s inflation and economic contraction.
“We’re not in a macro [economic] environment that’s pointing towards recession; we’re in a macro environment that’s pointing towards decreased growth . . . I’m not worried about banks really cutting down credit,”
The controversial MiCA has established several rules for the international regulation of the European crypto ecosystem, which will take effect in 2023.