New EU rules will not block cryptocurrency payments

The new EU anti-money laundering rules will not block cryptocurrency payments for users of anonymous (non-custodial) crypto wallets. Today, the European Parliament is scheduled to vote on the relevant draft law.

Due to the serious dissatisfaction of the European crypto community with the introduction of a € 1,000 limit for payments made from personal crypto wallets, politicians decided to return to the original proposal to limit payments. According to the latest version of the bill, payments for goods and services from anonymous wallets will be limited to € 7000.

«We are not preventing cryptocurrency transactions at all. It is just necessary to introduce certain restrictions in cases where identification is impossible,» French MP Damien Karem told reporters. The € 7,000 limit will be allowed for transfers between individuals, except in cases of real estate and luxury goods, as well as when depositing funds in financial institutions.

A few weeks earlier, the European Parliament passed a bill on digital wallets, which aims to create a European digital wallet that could compete with the identification systems provided by major tech companies such as Google and Apple. European Digital Identity is intended to provide a legal framework for the creation of a system of national digital wallets interoperable across the EU, where citizens can access all documents, from birth certificates to driver’s licenses.