The reason why I, an American, do not start a crypto asset startup in the United States[Column]| coindesk JAPAN | Coindesk Japan

A bear market is a development time in crypto. 2023 will be the year when more and more developers will begin to make an impact in the real world through the on-chain introduction of real-world assets (RWA) and the explosion and great interest in projects in the regenerative finance (ReFi) space. I’m sure it will be

But I am very pessimistic about America as a place for developers to start their crypto projects. Especially if you have tokens related to your business.

America lags behind the world

Places like Dubai have the regulatory clarity and direct support in place for developers to start doing business in a crypto oasis environment. The US, on the other hand, lags far behind in terms of regulation.

For years now, the United States has been in a never-ending debate about which tokens should be classified as securities or commodities. Under SEC Chairman Gensler’s will, anything crypto-assets will become a security, and he’ll be the judge, jury, and executioner.

For too long, America has had well-defined regulations rather than regulatory clarity that gives the crypto ecosystem the predictability and ability to move forward knowing that it is operating within the bounds of the law. Coercive approaches through threats and fines have been chosen in situations where

Many lawmakers recognize the consequences of regulatory ambiguity. Those legislators are well aware of the fundamental risk that regulatory uncertainty will leave America behind if cryptoassets become pervasive across all global industries.

But Congress’ inaction has created a regulatory vacuum that SEC Chairman Gensler is taking advantage of. Most recently, the SEC forced cryptocurrency exchange Kraken to stop its US staking operations, which accounted for about 10% of its annual revenue, and pay a $30 million fine. The SEC, or at least Gensler, has decided once again to crack down on the well-controlled and regulated American cryptocurrency exchanges.

As many pundits have pointed out, the SEC’s actions have been so frequent for companies such as Kraken and Coinbase that have been doing business in the United States for years and have complied with all applicable laws. It is ironic that anger is aimed at. As a result, rogue companies and bad actors, such as Sam Bankman-Fried and his FTX, have moved abroad beyond the reach of any US regulator.

Immediate need for clear regulations

Think about it. If you’re looking to start a legitimate cryptocurrency business and you have the choice of any location in the world, why put the US in your top 10 countries to consider?

As a crypto entrepreneur, I can tell you from my own experience that every lawyer I spoke with advised me not to consider starting a business in the US due to regulatory uncertainty.

In America, no one knows which crypto assets are considered securities. It creates a difficult situation for developers around the world to issue tokens while trying to avoid drawing the wrath of the SEC. Developers do not want to cheat or sell securities to US retail investors.

The company I am CEO of is also in the process of choosing where to register its token issuing entity, and Dubai is currently high on the list. Other leading candidates include Singapore, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom, which have much clearer regulations for token issuers.

Even though I’m American and our project already has participants in the US, there are no US regions worth considering for our company.

The United States, which has given birth to venture capital and global innovation, must urgently improve the environment and establish regulations based on rules that all developers can comply with with transparency.

Otherwise, both the United States and its innovation ecosystem should recognize the need to create regulatory clarity and act to encourage emerging cryptocurrency hubs around the world to invest in the best projects and the brightest. High risk of losing staff.

Mr. Boyd Cohen: Co-Founder and CEO of Iomob, creator of WheelCoin, a “Move-to-Earn” game that rewards users for choosing eco-friendly transportation.

｜Translation and editing: Akiko Yamaguchi, Takayuki Masuda
| Image: Midjourney/CoinDesk
｜Original: I’m American, but My Crypto Startup Won’t Be