(WHTM) – Changes are coming for those who transfer virtual currency, including cryptocurrency, in Pennsylvania.
The Pennsylvania Department of Banking and Securities says a bill recently signed into law by Governor Josh Shapiro “ensures that the transmission of virtual currency is treated the same as traditional money transmission under Pennsylvania’s Money Transmitter Act (MTA).”
Under the new law, the department says entities that facilitate the transfer of virtual currency will be required to meet the same licensure standards as other money transmitters.
The law will include cryptocurrency exchanges and modernizations to the MTA law, such as definitions, licensing requirements, exemptions, and oversight provisions.
“Before this law, if a company transmitted money for a fee, they had to be licensed by us — but if they transmitted virtual currency like Bitcoin, they didn’t. That gap left consumers unprotected,” said Department of Banking and Securities (DoBS) Secretary Wendy Spicher. “Now, by requiring licensure for virtual currency transmitters, we can close that gap and keep bad actors out of the business. Enhancing consumer protection for Pennsylvanians will always be a top priority, and I thank members of the House and Senate for their bipartisan efforts on behalf of the Commonwealth.”
The bill, which was sponsored by State Senator Chris Gebhard (R-Berks/Lancaster/Lebanon), passed the State Senate 37-0 and passed the State House 201-2.
The law will take effect 60 days after the governor signed it on June 27.
