Date: 19 January 2017

On 19 January 2017, Bitcoin-conference was held under the MAPPING project in Hannover, Germany. The event was organised together with the Institute for Criminal Science of the University Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Hannover.

The emerging importance of virtual currencies challenges the law. Protection of means of payment is aligned with traditional currencies and their regulation. These regulations are increasingly challenged by new currencies such as Bitcoin that are developed and administered by non-state players.

It is therefore to be discussed whether state protection is or should be limited to traditional currencies or should be widened to cover virtual currencies. Should, for example, traditional forms of property protection also apply to virtual money? Should money laundering prevention rules apply? But also traditional instruments of criminal law could need adaptation: How do instruments of criminal investigation and sanctions such as monetary fines need to be modernised? These and similar questions were discussed during the MAPPING Bitcoin-conference in Hannover.

Possibilities and threats of virtual currencies were debated from a perspective of international public law as well as from practical views such as INTERPOL and national police authorities. Presentations also focused on the innovative potential of virtual currencies and the impact on the economy. On this basis, first answers were given, with a particular focus on issues of criminal law, as well as on privacy and data security law.

For further information, please visit the project website.