NYDFS Chief Defends State Regulator's Crypto Approach

New York Department of Financial Services superintendent Maria Vullo defended her office's approach to regulating cryptocurrencies on Thursday.

Speaking at the Center for Foreign Relation's "Legal Tender? The Regulation of Cryptocurrencies" panel in New York on Wednesday, Vullo said that her view is "Regulation in this space, just like any space where you have money transmission, ," making a point she often revisited during the discussion.

While some state and federal regulars are taking time to create rules for the industry, "It certainly hasn't taken New York long to establish a framework" for regulating cryptocurrencies, Vullo said in her opening statement, referring to the state's controversial BitLicense.

The role of regulation in the cryptocurrency space was a contentious topic, with Blockchain president and chief legal officer Marco Santori claiming regulators should ease up on the over-regulation.

In particular, he argued that New York's laws "Have been an abject failure."

"I think regulators absolutely need to be in the space, I know they're saying 'we're innovative, we're startups, we need to be left alone and put in a sandbox.' Toddlers play in the sandbox. Adults play by the rules."

"If you're the executive at a bank, you have people to answer to if you're one of a dozen coders around the world whose name no one knows and you're the one at the controls changing how this cryptocurrency works we have to figure out how these people are held accountable."

In turn, Vullo said: "I didn't know this was about feelings."

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