Developing an effective regulatory framework for virtual currencies in Mauritius

Balgobin, Priya and Seeam, Amar ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8203-1545 (2020) Developing an effective regulatory framework for virtual currencies in Mauritius. Madhavjee, Krishnaraj and Soyjaudah, Sunjiv, eds. Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Intelligent and Innovative Computing Applications. In: ICONIC'20, 24-25 Sept 2020, Plaine Magnien, Mauritius. ISBN 9781450375580. [Conference or Workshop Item] (doi:10.1145/3415088.3415126)

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Abstract

It is widely accepted that virtual currencies have the potential of revolutionising the global finance sector. The potential of bitcoin has been recognised by corporate organisations and governments. With the continuing growth of bitcoin as a cryptocurrency, its regulatory regime has become crucial in determining the fate of this novel system of exchange. The global economic crisis and pandemic situation of 2020 is turning industries towards adoption of digital and virtual currencies. Although bitcoins have been regarded as the pioneer of decentralized peer to peer virtual currencies, there remains uncertainties in various countries as to whether they should embrace, devise new regulations or completely outlaw the digital currency. It has been recognised that Mauritius has the potential of acting as a Financial Technology (Fintech) hub for the African and surrounding regions through the rapid development and adoption of technology.For this to become possible, the current regulatory framework of Mauritius must be updated to reflect the continuing innovating changes in this area.

So far, Mauritius has not yet implemented any specific regulations to address the use of Blockchain, bitcoins and cryptocurrencies in its jurisdiction. The only related legal framework currently being used in this area is the Regulatory Sandbox Licensing Scheme implemented by the Board of Investment Mauritius ("BOI"). It offers the possibility for investors to conduct their businesses in an area where there exists no legal framework or inadequate provisions under existing Mauritian legislation.

In this research paper, the different regulatory frameworks of United States,Canada and China will be assessed to serve as a comparative analysis to examine the nature of their regulatory regimes.These jurisdictions have been chosen as they have been in the forefront of bringing significant regulatory changes, which has not been the case in any countries in Africa or Indian Ocean. These will be used to address the question as to whether there are any existing legal frameworks from other jurisdictions that can be customised or adapted for incorporation into the jurisdiction of Mauritius.

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