As Taiwan's virtual asset market develops increasingly vibrantly, legislative steps are also accelerating. The Ko-P Party legislator Shan-Shan Huang's office recently proposed a "Virtual Asset Service Law Draft" that, compared to the administrative department's version, features more industry support, innovation encouragement, and balanced risk management. Particularly in areas such as KOL management, establishing a dedicated authority unit, and sandbox experiment connection clauses, it demonstrates a more practical and internationally aligned legislative perspective.
Table of Contents
ToggleDedicated Unit Legislation: Balancing Supervision and Development
Shan-Shan Huang's draft clearly stipulates the Financial Supervisory Commission as the competent authority and further requires establishing a dedicated unit and personnel to strengthen supervision and policy implementation capabilities. Additionally, it empowers the competent authority to encourage industry development, allowing subsidies and commendations for academic institutions, industry, or individuals.
This differs from the official version's focus solely on supervision, reflecting the office's stance: "Laws should not only prevent malpractice but also provide benefits."
KOL Management: Preventing Crypto Fraudulent Advertisements
Facing the risk of false marketing by KOLs (influencers) in the crypto space, the draft first explicitly defines "Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs)" as regulated subjects, covering those who profit from influence and are involved in virtual asset marketing on platforms like YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and X (formerly Twitter).
This clause suggests that future KOLs promoting tokens or trading platforms may be required to disclose partnership relationships, prohibited from exaggerating returns, and potentially held jointly liable, officially ushering virtual asset marketing into a new compliance era.
Innovation Sandbox Alignment: Operational After Experiment Completion
Addressing the gap between innovative experiment regulations (commonly known as sandbox) and formal regulations, the draft provides reinforcement. It stipulates that if businesses complete an innovation experiment approved by the competent authority, they can operate immediately and apply for a permit within 6 months, obtaining a license within 15 months at most; those failing to apply within the time limit will be ordered to exit.
Furthermore, it requires the competent authority to submit an annual review report to the legislature, reflecting sandbox implementation and potential legislative adjustments.
More Detailed Service Types: Covering Financial Derivatives
The draft also expands "virtual asset services" types, adding "derivative financial products based on virtual assets" and "other services approved by the competent authority", attempting to proactively include future trends like DeFi, derivative financial products, and innovative contract platforms to avoid regulatory lag.
Specialized Law Legislation Competition, Shan-Shan Huang's Version with Market-Oriented Characteristics
While the administrative department's draft has completed explanatory meetings, the legislative version remains undecided. In comparison, Shan-Shan Huang's version clearly bears market-oriented and risk co-governance characteristics: striving to balance innovation promotion and investor protection, reflecting her office's grasp of industry dynamics and participation willingness.
The draft is not just a political participation statement but also attempts to fill current regulatory gaps and legislative blind spots. From KOL management, innovation alignment, industry subsidies to detailed division of labor, this specialized law draft will undoubtedly be an unavoidable voice during legislative review.
Risk Warning
Crypto investment carries high risks, with potentially extreme price volatility, and you may lose all principal. Please carefully assess risks.
