In an effort to improve regulation throughout the country, the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization requires trading platforms to complete their applications quickly. The country has made it clear that trading platforms will first have to obtain an “investment dealer” status before they can offer their services.
So, to ensure that trading platforms within Canada comply with their regulatory needs, the CSA has been quick to send a reminder to all trading platforms that are still operational. They will have to fill in their applications and work with relevant government agencies if they want to continue to operate in the market.
Canada’s Efforts to Regulate Crypto
Starting in 2021, as interest in crypto platforms really started to take off, the CSA and CIRO released a joint statement about the unique position that trading platforms like Finance Phantom were in. All Canada-based crypto trading platforms, better known as CTPs, would be operating as restricted dealers for a limited time. This restricted dealer title wasn’t a bad deal for CTPs since it still allowed them to operate in the country while they continued to become part of the fully regulated system.
This was also a good option for many of the regulators in the country since it allowed them to see how these different trading platforms function. And if there was something that they didn’t understand about these platforms or any loopholes that could be exploited, regulators had the time they needed to find the best way to regulate crypto.
With the deadline coming to an end, regulatory boards throughout the country are making it clear that CTPs should become fully authorized dealers and fill in their applications. The restricted dealer’s phase was always a temporary option to give both the trading platforms and regulators time to set the rules straight.
The Need for Regulation Worldwide
Regulatory boards throughout Canada are putting their foot down for CTPs needing to register as fully authorized dealers to continue offering their services. Since the original restricted dealer title came into play over three years ago, CTPs in the country have gotten enough time to check how the system works and how they will all be a part of it. Therefore, the CSA is very much expecting that CTPs will be quick to sign up as fully authorized service providers, which will allow them to offer their services in the country effectively.
Canada’s insistence that these companies register themselves with relevant regulatory bodies is just the latest push in international regulation for cryptocurrencies. While many people still believe that the crypto market should stay independent and free of any government intervention, others would prefer that the market be more accessible. Through improved regulation, scams and other types of fraud will become less prevalent throughout the market. Furthermore, others also argue that having better regulations can improve the overall quality of the service that many of the platforms provide.
The Growth of Crypto in Canada
For many years, especially during the height of the popularity of cryptocurrencies, Canada was never in the conversation for countries that are big players in the space. Although it is true that not many Canadian trading platforms existed, interest in these unique investments was certainly on the rise. That is when Candian regulator boards opened their doors to all sorts of trading platforms and services like the Finance Phantom trading bot.
Better yet, the popularity of cryptocurrencies shows no signs of slowing down in the country, with nearly 50% of all financial services in the country offering some form of crypto trading. This shows that despite recent bumps in the market cap of cryptocurrencies, their popularity still remains high.
