Archive: February 2024

Our lawyers from across Europe, the Middle East, Asia and the US share their insights on what to expect across the regulatory landscape in relation to FinTech and crypto-assets in 2024.

This article first appeared in PLC Magazine in the January / February 2024 issue of PLC Magazine.

Türkiye has positioned itself as a dynamic hub for FinTech innovation, undergoing substantial transformation in its financial landscape in recent years. Driven by technological advancements, evolving consumer preferences and proactive regulatory initiatives, the FinTech sector in Türkiye, especially in payment services, e-money and digital banking, has experienced noteworthy growth. Despite limited regulation, the crypto assets sector has also emerged as a very strong force, adding another dimension to the country's evolving FinTech narrative.

The Supreme Court of British Columbia recently released an important decision considering the validity of government directions to the British Columbia Utilities Commission (BCUC): Conifex Timber Inc. v British Columbia (Lieutenant Governor in Council).1 Under review was an Order in Council (OIC) requiring the BCUC to allow BC Hydro to halt cryptocurrency interconnections for 18 months (until June 28, 2024). In a decision with impacts beyond cryptocurrency operations, Justice Tammen dismissed Conifex’s challenge of the OIC, concluding that the suspension of cryptocurrency interconnections was lawful.

On 16 January 2024, Singapore’s Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA), in collaboration with the AI Verify Foundation, announced a public consultation on its draft Model AI Governance Framework for Generative AI (Draft GenAI Governance Framework), showing the areas where future policy interventions relating to generative AI may take place and options for such intervention.

We can look back to 2023 as a year of categorization and enforcement in the crypto space across the world, with significant local and international developments impacting the crypto markets and their regulation in Canada. This was no surprise, as such developments came following the turbulence of 2022 where many important crypto institutions crashed and went bankrupt, resulting in immense financial consequences for investors and users involved.