The State of Regulating Crypto Assets in Canada
Although the first cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, was invented 17 years ago in 2008,
the regulations of cryptocurrencies and crypto platforms (also
known as crypto exchanges) in Canada are still in their early
stages. As late as December 2023, crypto platforms were required to
run within a regulatory sandbox closely monitored by the Canadian
Securities Administrators (CSA), an organization of all provincial
and territorial securities regulators across Canada with the aim to
improve collaboration and achieve policy consensus.
After December 2023, crypto platforms have been moved out of the
CSA's sandbox but must still register with CSA members, i.e.
the provincial or territorial securities regulators. The registered
platforms must abide by certain conditions to help protect
investors, including holding the crypto assets deposited by the
customers in trust and holding the platform's own assets
separately.
