The Comissão de Valores Mobiliários (CVM) of Brazil is planning to start a second regulatory sandbox program in 2024.
Speaking at Rio Innovation Week on Oct. 4, the superintendent of institutional investor supervision with the CVM, Daniel Maeda, said the regulator will be exploring a regulatory sandbox for use cases of tokenization potentially starting in 2024. According to Maeda, the regulator’s efforts to launch the second sandbox followed positive experiences tokenizing roughly $36 million in assets.
“We do not define specific cases, because we want to let innovation reach the CVM, without prior limitations,” Maeda said to Cointelegraph Brazil. “But some areas for the application of tokenization certainly catch our attention, such as agribusiness and [Environmental, Social, and Governance].”
The superintendent added that the CVM planned to wait for changes to be implemented related to Brazil’s crypto market including those for the country’s central bank digital currency, the Drex. According to Maeda, both the securities regulator and central bank should consider developments in the digital asset space as well as how other countries have handled regulation.
“I have a lot of respect for the [United States SEC}, and I don’t think it’s up to me to point out their stance as right or wrong,” said Maeda. “What I can say is that we, at CVM, saw many benefits in this market to leverage processes. Through tokenization, the investor gains in transparency and lower costs, in addition to increasing the democratization of investments, which are values that the commission carries.”
Brazil’s central bank announced a tightening of regulations in October amid a significant surge of crypto adoption in the country. Governor Campos Neto specifically called out connections between using crypto and tax evasion or illicit activities.
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva signed a framework into law in June establishing the different roles the country’s central bank and CVM would have in regulating digital assets. In November, Brazil plans to roll out a program issuing identification documents through a private blockchain as part of efforts to protect personal data and prevent fraud.
Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe execs once ruled out adopting crypto over concerns of volatility and risk, and the banking giant also blocked customer crypto transactions back in 2015.
Sir Keir Starmer continues to face the threat of a major rebellion during a key vote on welfare reforms later – despite making last-minute concessions to disgruntled Labour MPs.
Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall has confirmed that all existing claimants of the personal independence payment (PIP), the main disability benefit, will be protected from changes to eligibility.
The combined value of the standard Universal Credit allowance and the health top-up will rise “at least in line with inflation” every year of this parliament.
And an additional £300m for employment support for sick and disabled people in 2026 has been announced, which will rise every year after.
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10:54
Welfare cuts ‘needed to be made’
Ms Kendall has also promised that a consultation into PIP – “co-produced” with disabled people – will be published next autumn.
She said the U-turn on welfare cuts will cost taxpayers about £2.5bn by 2030 – less than half the £4.8bn the government had expected to save with its initial proposals.
But after announcing the U-turns, Labour MPs were still publicly saying they could not back the plans as they do not go far enough to allay their concerns.
Disabilities minister Stephen Timms would not say he was “confident” the proposals would pass the Commons when asked on Sky News’ Politics Hub with Sophy Ridge.
“We’ve got a very strong package, I certainly hope it passes,” he replied.
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1:49
‘Disabled people thrown under the bus’
A total of 86 charities united yesterday to call on MPs to reject the reforms, saying they will harm disabled people and calling it “a political choice”.
The likes of Oxfam, Child Action Poverty Group, Mind and Shelter said the bill has been brought to a vote without consulting disabled people and without any assessment “of its impact on health and employment outcomes”.
When asked to name “a single” disability organisation in favour of the reforms, Ms Kendall declined to do so.
Several Labour MPs indicated they would still vote against the changes, leaving the government in the dark over how big a rebellion it still may face.
Ms Kendall tried to allay their fears, telling MPs: “I believe we have a fair package, a package that protects existing claimants because they’ve come to rely on that support.”
Richard Burgon presented a petition to parliament yesterday evening against the cuts, signed by more than 77,000 people.
Several Labour MPs questioned why the vote was going ahead before the review into PIP is published – including Rachael Maskell, who said she could not “countenance sick and disabled people being denied support” and added: “It is a matter of conscience.”
Connor Naismith said the concessions “undoubtedly improve efforts to secure welfare reform which is fair”, but added: “Unfortunately, I do not believe these concessions yet go far enough.”
Image: Labour rebel Nadia Whittome said the government was ‘ignoring’ disabled people
Nadia Whittome accused the government of “ignoring” disabled people and urged ministers to go “back to the drawing board”.
Ian Byrne told the Commons he will vote against the “cruel cuts” to disability benefits because the “so-called concessions go nowhere near far enough”.
The vote will take place this evening, with coverage on Sky News’ Politics Hub live blog and on TV.