The draft law has given virtual asset service providers (VASPs) until 18 March 2022, to comply with the new stipulations. The law starts with expanding the definition of VASPs to include sectors of the digital currency industry that were once left unchecked. Previously, the AML Act only looked at exchanges and wallets.
As Sumsub notes, the law now includes initial coin offering (ICO) issuers, brokerage services, decentralised platforms and dApps, and third-party platforms which are involved in the sale, purchase, or storage of digital assets. In cases where there are no legal entities, individuals who developed the networks will be held accountable.
The new law has also hiked the licensing and operational fees for VASPs in Estonia. Previously, they had to part with EUR 3,300 (USD 3,700) for an operational license. Once the draft law takes effect, it will triple the fee to EUR 10,000 (USD 11,300). Still, on operational costs, it has raised the share capital minimum tenfold for wallets, exchanges, and ICOs from USD 13,500 to USD 141,000. For companies that deal in digital currency transfer services, the fee has shot up to USD 395,000.
