Survey: 88% of Crypto Exchanges Want Regulation for the Industry to Mature

A new survey has found that 88 percent of crypto exchanges want regulation, while a third believe a market crash is a significant threat to the industry.

The study, conducted by Mistertango, a crypto payment app that is regulated by the Bank of Lithuania, is based on responses from 24 cryptocurrency exchanges across Europe, Asia, South America, and Oceania, with a total daily trading volume of more than $100 million.

According to an announcement, the study’s aim was to assess feelings towards regulation, anonymity, and the maturation of the crypto market.

Notably, the research from Mistertango found that 88 per cent of digital currency exchanges want industry regulation.

“The industry is crying out for regulation and the response from partners has shown this,” said Gabrielius Bilkštys, business manager at Mistertango. “Uncertainty is the biggest fear, and regulation is critical to provide the stability we need. Unfortunately, there is no regulatory consensus – worldwide or otherwise. For cryptocurrencies to move towards the scale and ubiquity possessed by fiat currency, it needs cohesive, considered, and comprehensive regulation. Thus, regulation will be a catalyst, not an inhibitor to the crypto market’s development.”

A total of 40 per cent of crypto exchanges indicated that reducing barriers to funding crypto activities by banks would improve acceptance, and that 55 per cent of cryptocurrency users should be subject to Know-Your-Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) checks similar to those used by traditional financial services.

The survey by Mistertango comes at a time when there is much debate about regulating the cryptocurrency market. In June, CryptoUK, a cryptocurrency self-regulatory industry body, told a U.K. Treasury Select Committee that the U.K. government risks missing out “on the biggest technology since the internet,” if it doesn’t bring the crypto industry under the remit of the traditional financial services.

Vladimir Putin, Russia’s president, has said in the past that cryptocurrencies pose “significant risks,” and that they need regulating. However, Shaktikanta Das, India’s former secretary of economic affairs, has said that regulating cryptocurrencies would be difficult.

In parts of Asia and the U.S. regulators have, however, shut down trading. As a result, this has led to price volatility. Despite this 17 per cent of respondents are of the opinion that overly strict regulation is the biggest threat to the market. Furthermore, 30 per cent fear a major market crash and devaluation of assets are a significant threat.

“It has been widely supposed that crypto companies want to avoid a regulated environment, but this is far from the truth,” said Oleksandr Lutskevych, CEO of CEX.IO, a multi-functional crypto exchange. “The industry is all too aware that regulation will lead to the maturity of the market and ensure businesses remain free from suspicion of involvement with illegitimate uses of cryptocurrency.”