Archiv für die Kategorie ‘Digital Currencies’

Registration of Cryptocurrency Companies in Germany

Dec 19, 18 • Digital Currencies • No Comments • Benjamin Kirschbaum

The judgment of the Supreme Court of Berlin, which found that cryptocurrencies are no units of account within the meaning defined for regulatory purposes, shook up the German cryptocurrency scene. The first Bitcoin ATMs have been installed and many startups are […]
Initial Coin Offering (ICO) – How to Avoid Investor Protection Claims

Sep 28, 18 • Blockchain, Digital Currencies • No Comments • Benjamin Kirschbaum

Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) have established themselves as an alternative form of corporate financing at least since 2017. Compared to conventional methods like share issues or venture capital financing, ICOs offer various advantages. In most cases, they are cheaper and faster […]
BaFin Confirms Regulatory Exemption of Utility Tokens in Germany

Sep 27, 18 • Banking Regulations, Blockchain, Digital Currencies • No Comments • Benjamin Kirschbaum

In the past, we already reported about so-called Initial Coin Offerings (ICO) that may be a suitable alternative source of corporate financing. Until recently, however, the regulatory situation was uncertain. The Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) had already classified Bitcoins as […]
A Face-off between Facebook and Digital Heirs in Germany

Jul 13, 18 • Digital Currencies, Inheritance Law, Privacy Law • No Comments • Dr. H. Elizabeth Kroeger

Karlsruhe, Germany, July 12, 2018. It’s another tiny notch in David’s belt in his battle with Goliath. Germany’s Federal Court of Justice (Bundesgerichtshof – BGH) has cast the die in a five-and-a-half year struggle between the parents of a deceased teenager […]
Getting a Voice on the Blockchain: “Delegated Proof of Stake” Interesting for Companies

Jun 28, 18 • Blockchain, Digital Currencies • No Comments • Benjamin Kirschbaum

Blockchain technology, which was originally developed by the anonymous developer Satoshi Nakamoto, is based on the idea of creating a decentralized database that may be used to process value transactions. Contrary to the monetary system provided by the central banks, the […]
How Does Financing a Start-up Through an ICO Work in Germany?

May 9, 18 • Blockchain, Capital Markets and Securities Law, Digital Currencies • No Comments • Sebastian Förste

Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) are presently probably the most hyped way of procuring venture capital not only in Germany but worldwide. ICOs associate elements of crowdfunding with Blockchain technology. By the end of March 2018 alone, this innovative financing mechanism generated […]
Cryptocurrencies: Mining VAT Exempt in Germany

Mar 28, 18 • Digital Currencies • No Comments • Benjamin Kirschbaum

By circular of February 27, 2018, the Federal Ministry of Finance has clarified some open VAT-related questions with respect to the trading and mining of cryptocurrencies. According to the circular, transactions in bitcoin are VAT exempt. Accepting bitcoin as consideration is […]
No Authorization Required for Trading in Cryptocurrencies in Germany

Mar 28, 18 • Digital Currencies • No Comments • Sebastian Förste

In Germany, the commercial trading in most goods is permissible without any specific authorization. However, anyone intending to provide services relating to securities or other financial instruments needs an authorization from the German financial market supervisory authority BaFin. As a successful […]
Cryptocurrencies: Federal Ministry of Finance confirms VAT exemption

Mar 7, 18 • Digital Currencies, Value Added Tax • No Comments • Benjamin Kirschbaum

The last few days and weeks have seen a lot of uncertainty among companies trading in cryptocurrencies. According to a media report, the Bonn tax office had refused to grant VAT exemptions for transactions in Bitcoin as they considered Bitcoin to […]
Hard Fork: German Tax Treatment and Date of Acquisition

Dec 29, 17 • Blockchain, Digital Currencies • No Comments • Benjamin Kirschbaum

More often, so-called “hard forks” occur in the cycle of a cryptocurrency. The first cryptocurrency that completed a hard fork was the Ethereum blockchain. In the course of the so-called DAO hack in 2016, Ethereum was split into Ether (ETH) and […]