According to CoinDesk, a European Union (EU) pilot program allowing securities trades based on distributed ledger technology (DLT) is likely to become permanent. The EU is among several global jurisdictions experimenting with blockchain technology, which could save financial markets $100 billion per year by automating back-office processes and freeing up collateral. In April, the EU relaxed its financial services rules, allowing securities traders to interact with markets and exchanges to register tokens directly rather than using regulated intermediaries.
However, concerns about the potentially short-term nature of the new regime may have hindered investment in blockchain projects. Ivan Keller, an official at the European Commission's Securities Market Unit, sought to alleviate these fears by stating that the new legislation "is here to stay." Despite a review scheduled to take place after three to six years, the current, lighter rules will continue to apply by default. Keller added that it is "very unlikely" that the DLT pilot would be discontinued.
