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Blockchain technology – the new, distributed platform that removes intermediaries from the equation and resolves the trust issue – has brought fundamental changes to almost all industries and business models by enabling novel ways of transacting. The technology brings tremendous challenges to established principles, rules, laws, and regulations and has captured the minds of digital innovators, the wider financial industry, regulators, and governments alike who are now facing increasing pressure to support innovation while ensuring that the regulations and policies needed to hold stakeholders accountable for the communities they intend to serve are in place.
Even though this technology is still in its infancy, there are endless possibilities for Blockchain that could completely transform the way businesses are conducted. While countries around the world are trying to find out an appropriate approach to regulate Blockchain’s use and applications, individuals and organizations should now assess its related risks and legal challenges. Today, we witness that, different countries are approaching or attempt to regulate the use of Blockchain in their own way, i.e. some countries are welcoming, other are cautious, or demonstrate resistance to apply the technology. There is no doubt that, regulation, supervision, and global coordination will of course enable Blockchain to become mainstream. To ensure this, a harmonized and pro-innovation approach to the results brought by the technology and the way it is regulated is needed.
This training course aims to consider the emerging issues in the regulation of Blockchain technology and examine the potential need for additional or adapted legislation.
In this course, participants will understand that the wider the adoption of Blockchain technology across the world, the greater the innovation, which is vital for businesses and societies.
Furthermore, the most important developments in relation to regulating the use of Blockchains shall be discussed and assessed, including certain pieces of regulation that have already been in place as well as initiatives, directives, views and positions of global bodies, key jurisdictions, different countries’ regulators and authorities.
Training Objectives
By the end of the programme, participants will:
- understand what Blockchain is, how it functions and its features and characteristics
- understand blockchain governance and be able to explore the various Consensus Mechanisms
- understand Smart Contracts and Decentralised Applications (Dapps)
- explore the law and the regulatory landscape around Blockchain and become familiar with Cyprus’ legal framework
- understand how Blockchain affects the law, how it disrupts the legal industry and the legal issues of blockchain-enabled platforms and blockchain business models
- explore Blockchain use cases in the legal industry and realize what legal services are needed by clients in the Blockchain industry
- understand Tokens and Asset Tokenisation on blockchain
- become familiar with ICOs and STOs and the Crypto Asset Service Providers (CASPs) registration
- be able to discuss documentation for blockchain-innovative business models
- understand lawyers’ opportunities in the Fintech Industry
Training Outline
Introduction
- An overview of Blockchain Technology
- Why regulation matters?
An overview of crypto-assets regulatory environments
- What are the issues policymakers and governments are worried about?
- The key actors in the space: International Bodies, Regional Bodies, Governmental Bodies
- Discussing selective regulatory initiatives (FATF recommendations, European and Member States’ initiatives)
- The upcoming MiCA regulation
- Cyprus Blockchain Strategy
- Cyprus Blockchain regulatory environment
Understanding Digital Tokens
- Crypto Assets vs Cryptocurrencies
- Types of cryptocurrencies (Bitcoin, Altcoins, Stablecoins)
- Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) – A Digital Euro?
- Tokenization and tokenized economy
- Legal Classification of Tokens:
- -Fungible Tokens Vs Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs)
- -Payment Tokens
- -Utility Tokens
- -Security Tokens
Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) and Securities Token Offerings (STOs)
- Initial Public Offering (IPO) Vs Initial Coin Offering (ICO)
- Initial Coin Offering (ICO) and Security Token Offering (STO)
- What is an ICO and what it involves: Risks and warnings
- The legal process of issuing an ICO or STO
- Legal, regulatory and technical challenges
Closing Remarks
Who Should Attend
This course is suitable for people from all kinds of backgrounds who are interested in learning about Blockchain regulation and policy.
It is also ideal for:
- EU Lawyers
- Third-country Lawyers
- Legal Advisors
- Attorneys of the Republic
- Internal Lawyers (working in any legal department of an organization or government)
- Legal Services Professionals
- Graduate Lawyers
- Junior Lawyers
- Law Students
- Law Researchers
- Law Drafters
- Legal Projects Managers
- Compliance officers
- Financial advisors
- Government Agencies
- HR Managers
- Corporate Administrators
- Strategy Managers
- Technology Strategy Leaders
- Digital Transformation Heads, Officers and Team Members
- Innovation Leaders and members of Innovations labs
- Project Managers and Associate Project Managers
- Legal Analysts
- Executives and senior managers
Industry Expert | Christiana Aristidou
Christiana Aristidou is an industry expert and thought leader who stands above subject-matter expertise and is an authority in her field. She is a passionate educator educating and training regulators, public authorities, incumbents, private organizations of all sizes, investors and entrepreneurs in Cyprus, the EU and internationally. A pioneer in the field of training course design, development and delivery, Christiana creates comprehensive training courses with innovative subject combinations and unique content, falling mainly in the intersection of Regulation, Business Law and Technology.
Christiana is a Business Technology Lawyer, CEO of “The Hybrid LawTech Firm”, empowered by Christiana Aristidou LLC, regulated by the Cyprus Bar Association (membership since 1997). She is the Director of SmartCity Business, a company that aims to create smart laws and business models that can be used by smart cities to assess what value they offer citizens by integrating ICT and emerging technologies into their infrastructure and services, enabling the acceleration of change from smart cities to smart societies. She is also a non-executive Director of Rhea Legal Tech, a company that offers AI, machine learning and automation solutions to the legal, regulatory and supervisory industries.
Christiana is the President of the CBA’s Technology Committee, a National Delegate to the ISO TC/307 Blockchain Committee actively contributing to Working Group 3 drafting standards on Smart Contracts and to Working Group 6 on Blockchain use cases. She is a member of ITU and has served in ITU-FG-DLTs. She is also a Certified International Legal Project Practitioner (IILPM), a member of the PMI Cyprus Chapter, an approved HRD Trainer, the Ambassador of European Legal Technology Association (ELTA) in Cyprus, and a Digital Transformation Specialist. Christiana is a co-founder, and, until recently, the Vice-Chair of the Cyprus Blockchain Association (CBA) which has recently merged with the Cyprus Blockchain Technologies (CBTs). She is currently a board member of CBTs and holds advisory and directorship positions in technology companies. Christiana is a regular speaker at local and international Law and Technology conferences.
Christiana holds a Bachelor’s in Law from the Kapodistrian University of Athens, three (3) LL.M degrees: 1. in Common Law, 2. International Commercial and Business Law (UEA-UK) and 3. Computers and Telecommunications Law (Queen Mary-UoL). She also holds a Certificate in International Commercial Arbitration (Cologne-Germany) and a certificate in Digital Currencies from the University of Nicosia.
Training Style
The programme is designed to deliver theoretical knowledge mainly via a lecture supported by power-point presentations.
At the end of the programme, participants will benefit from a Q&A session.
CPD Recognition
This programme may be approved for up to 6 CPD units in Financial Regulation. Eligibility criteria and CPD Units are verified directly by your association, regulator or other bodies which you hold membership.
For the CySEC requirements, CPD units attained from this course should not exceed the 50% of the total CPD Units of each individual.
The Cyprus Bar Association (CyBAR) has confirmed that this programme is accredited for 6 CPD units.
