Romania’s central bank, Banca Națională a României, notes the growing public interest in cryptocurrencies and warns that these remain “speculative assets, very volatile and extremely risky,” which have a high potential to generate financial losses for investors. However, the central bank believes the risks specific to the possession and trading of cryptocurrencies “do not represent at this moment a threat to the financial stability in Romania.”
There is no crypto ban in Romania.
The current crypto regulations in Romania do not contain provisions prohibiting credit institutions from offering account services to providers of exchange services between virtual and fiduciary currencies and to providers of digital wallets. However, Romania’s central bank recommends that credit institutions comply with standard measures to know customers and manage risks in money laundering and terrorist financing. The institutions are also required to consider the risks to which they are exposed due to the payment account services for providers of exchange services between crypto and fiat currencies by adapting internal risk policies and risk management capacity.
Romania’s crypto community welcomes the central bank’s comments.
Marius Morra, CEO, and co-founder of LDV Exchange, one of the most popular cryptocurrency exchanges in the country, welcomed the central bank’s comment, according to Ziarul Financiar. “Even if the central bank still emanates an air of mistrust,” particularly in that it does specifically “do not forbid banks to work with us.” Hitherto FinTechs such as LDV Exchange have been facing account closures in the context of several commercial banks in the local market being sensitive to transactions with funds from cryptocurrencies, the CEO explained. Bitcoin has gained massive mainstream exposure this year as the leading cryptocurrency price reached new all-time highs repeatedly.
