While it seems clear to many legal experts that native Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) or Monero do not qualify as Security Tokens, a lot of discussion worldwide is going on in relation to regulation of mining activities. See here Mining Bitcoin in the cloud is like renting a money printer and Philippines’ SEC Demands Crypto Cloud Mining Contracts To Be Registered As Securities
The purpose of this post is to consider whether crypto-mining qualifies as an-to-be regulated activity mainly based on the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive 2011/61/EU (“AIFMD“). This Directive aims to provide for an internal market for AIFMs and a harmonised and stringent regulatory and supervisory framework for the managing of alternative investment funds within the Union of all AIFMs, including those which have their registered office in an EU Member State (EU AIFMs) and those which have their registered office in a third country (non-EU AIFMs). Provisions of the AIFMD require specific authorizations and reporting and disclosure requirements assuring that the financial market authorities have the information they need to monitor financial systems in the EU as well as to fulfill their investor protection duties.
