Born and bred on the blockchain, crypto coins are the only type of currency that is not backed up by any government or central bank. This makes them both convenient and exciting, simultaneously effortless to use and actually challenging to trade.

Sure, they oblige to some kind of rules, but these rules are inherent to their own nature. Like most enticing things, cryptos are still delightfully unregulated by the official law.

But is this a good or a bad thing? Will cryptocurrencies’ best trait become their downfall?

To understand the complexities of the answer, one must first get familiar with blocks, chains, forks, and all other digital constructs set to govern the rules that all cryptocurrencies must abide by.

Blocks, Chains, and Forks

First and foremost, cryptocurrencies are not technically currencies at all. In layman’s terms, they are digital assets, “a speculative asset”, or a commodity according to the SEC.

A better, more precise way to describe them would be a “decentralized consensus network”, which means that all participants in the blockchain need to validate the crypto transaction and thus form a consensus to approve it. This adds another block to the chain, right next to pre-existing blocks.

A fork, which can be soft or hard, happens when all participants agree to initiate an update in this open-source system, such as a new software code set to improve the existing chain.

When this improvement is compatible with the legacy system, the fork is soft. But, when the improvement is not compatible with the older system, the chain of validated blocks splits in two, thus forming a hard fork.

And this, among other things, is what makes the cryptos’ value go up and down.

Implications for Business

With cryptocurrencies slowly outgrowing the hype, it’s becoming obvious that this new way of paying for goods and services could pose a challenge to fiat money.

In light of this, businesses big and small are starting to introduce Bitcoin and other currencies to their payment systems, both to keep up the pace with the growing demand and to engage crypto-savvy customers. Another growing trend is the rise of cryptocurrencies in places where central governments fail to deliver economic stability such as Venezuela, Turkey or Argentina.

But cryptocurrencies keep forking into rivaling chains, thus causing further imbalance in an already imbalanced system. Not only are businesses failing to find ways of attributing a more constant, tangible value to cryptos, but they are also at risk of entering the digital economy in an unfortunate moment, marked by the collapse of public trust. Crypto is still too unstable for the business world.

On the other hand, it offers numerous benefits to both entrepreneurs and their customers.

Apart from that fact that companies that accept cryptocurrencies as a form of payment could expand their customer base, this digital asset can also reduce payment processing fees and eliminate the risk of questionable chargebacks. Thanks to smart contracts, these transactions are simply more convenient.

Lack of Crypto Regulations

What frequent hard forks showcase is that these blockchain architectures lack robust governance frameworks. This makes them “prone to patterns of re-centralization: they are informally dominated by coalitions of powerful players within the cryptocurrency ecosystem who may violate basic rules of the blockchain community without accountability or sanction”, as explained by Dr. Phillip Hacker, LL.M (Yale), a Max Weber Fellow at the European University Institute.

Though hailed as the cryptos’ best trait, the lack of official regulations actually contributes to their high degree of volatility and uncertainty concerning their future development. Dr. Hacker adds, “This is deeply problematic as cryptocurrencies become more integrated with the traditional financial and legal system”. It also concerns businesses that are introducing crypto coins to their payment systems.

The calling for ‘Smart Regulation’

How should we regulate cryptocurrencies then? Apparently, it depends on which country you ask.

While countries like Russia, South Korea, and China are cracking down on crypto, others are moving in a more favorable direction for the blockchain community (and the entire digital economy with that). Apart from this technical flaw manifested in frequent forking, blockchain is still a revolutionary piece of tech that should not be red-taped but supported with a suitable kind of crypto framework.

On September 7, financial representatives from the European Union met in Vienna to discuss further steps for regulating cryptocurrencies. It’s clear that EU will move towards adoption to certain cryptocurrency rules. It’s clear that since there are very few rules of crypto-economy in Europe, the rights of investors are not protected. This means that honest entrepreneurs have to compete with individuals and organizations that use criminal techniques.

Moreover, the EU should be a pioneer of smart and flexible regulation of crypto-economy setting optimal rules equal for everyone. Smart regulation will build trust in crypto-economy and enable the economic development in Europe.

This ‘smart regulation’ should not stifle innovation and creativity that are too inherent to the blockchain. Balance must be found between cracking down on crypto and blindly supporting its growth, and the right place to look for it may be the “crypto nation”.

Lithuania has earned this title by establishing practices for when businesses in the crypto space need to apply anti-money laundering and securities law. It also clarified taxation and accounting aspects. Others are following such footsteps by implementing tax regulations that all owners of cryptocurrencies and participants in crypto transactions will have to abide by. The problem is recognized, and the solution will be here very soon.

There‘s another progressive European-wide initiative, recently initiated by David Siegel, the CEO of Pillar projects. The international working group is seeking to define an open-source equity token standard. The group involves a number of companies that are crafting a standard for equity tokens, as well as the Chamber of Digital Commerce, and other blockchain groups in the US and Europe. HODL Finance has also joined the group.

By Vytautas Senavicius, Ph.D.

HODL Finance is the European digital lending company. HODL Finance issues loans backed by cryptocurrency and other digital assets. Founded by the shareholders of the peer-to-peer lending platform, Savy, HODL Finance now serves clients around the world.