While the Executive Yuan has yet to decide on a regulatory system for cryptocurrencies and initial coin offerings (ICOs), the Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) yesterday said it would only oversee enforcement of money laundering policies.
The commission maintains an open stance and welcomes all industry innovations, Banking Bureau Deputy Director Sherri Chuang (莊秀媛) said at a news conference, adding that it prefers to monitor developments to avoid stifling early-stage growth.
As cryptocurrencies and the issuance of new “coins” are classified as commodities, the virtual assets do not fall under the commission’s jurisdiction, Chuang said.
The commission is only involved in preventing money laundering through virtual assets, she said.
The situation is similar to that of lease finance companies, where the commission’s involvement is limited to money laundering prevention, she added.
ICOs, which have been billed as the future of fundraising, do not cross any regulatory red lines in Taiwan, Securities and Futures Bureau Chief Secretary Chien Hung-ming (簡宏明) said.
Each ICO would be assessed on a case-by-case basis, he said, adding that regulators are primarily concerned with examining the fundraising prospectus of each coin issuance.
The commission would assess each issuance to determine if they should be classified as a security or a virtual commodity, he added.
“It is very difficult to define broadly, as each case is different,” Chien said.
Separately yesterday, the commission confirmed that four Taiwanese companies are waiting to seek a stock listing for their Chinese subsidiaries.
To prevent equity dilution and inadequate transparency, the Taiwan Stock Exchange and Taipei Exchange have implemented rules to ensure shareholders’ interests, the commission said.
Taiwan-based parent companies would be required to seek board of directors and shareholder approval, as well as third-party expert opinions, before they may cut holdings in China-based subsidiaries by more than 3 percent within three years, the commission said.
Intel Corp chief executive officer Lip-Bu Tan (陳立武) is expected to meet with Taiwanese suppliers next month in conjunction with the opening of the Computex Taipei trade show, supply chain sources said on Monday. The visit, the first for Tan to Taiwan since assuming his new post last month, would be aimed at enhancing Intel’s ties with suppliers in Taiwan as he attempts to help turn around the struggling US chipmaker, the sources said. Tan is to hold a banquet to celebrate Intel’s 40-year presence in Taiwan before Computex opens on May 20 and invite dozens of Taiwanese suppliers to exchange views
Application-specific integrated circuit designer Faraday Technology Corp (智原) yesterday said that although revenue this quarter would decline 30 percent from last quarter, it retained its full-year forecast of revenue growth of 100 percent. The company attributed the quarterly drop to a slowdown in customers’ production of chips using Faraday’s advanced packaging technology. The company is still confident about its revenue growth this year, given its strong “design-win” — or the projects it won to help customers design their chips, Faraday president Steve Wang (王國雍) told an online earnings conference. “The design-win this year is better than we expected. We believe we will win
Quanta Computer Inc (廣達) chairman Barry Lam (林百里) is expected to share his views about the artificial intelligence (AI) industry’s prospects during his speech at the company’s 37th anniversary ceremony, as AI servers have become a new growth engine for the equipment manufacturing service provider. Lam’s speech is much anticipated, as Quanta has risen as one of the world’s major AI server suppliers. The company reported a 30 percent year-on-year growth in consolidated revenue to NT$1.41 trillion (US$43.35 billion) last year, thanks to fast-growing demand for servers, especially those with AI capabilities. The company told investors in November last year that
Power supply and electronic components maker Delta Electronics Inc (台達電) yesterday said it plans to ship its new 1 megawatt charging systems for electric trucks and buses in the first half of next year at the earliest. The new charging piles, which deliver up to 1 megawatt of charging power, are designed for heavy-duty electric vehicles, and support a maximum current of 1,500 amperes and output of 1,250 volts, Delta said in a news release. “If everything goes smoothly, we could begin shipping those new charging systems as early as in the first half of next year,” a company official said. The new