At a press conference, CMVM president Gabriel Bernardino recalled that the agency has no direct competences on the subject and warned about the volatility of cryptocurrencies in that unregulated area.

Specific regulation is needed at European and national level, he said.

Currently, only the Bank of Portugal has some powers in terms of cryptocurrency supervision, although Bernardino believes that could change with the implementation of European regulation.

The member nations of the European Union agreed in November to negotiate with the European Parliament the final texts of the Regulation on Cryptoassets Markets, an initiative in the final stage of discussion between the Parliament and the Council of the community bloc.

As foreseen in the regulation, Bernardino explained, there are market access materials and market platforms where the Commission could carry out supervisory actions.

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