The European Parliament has overwhelmingly backed new regulations governing the trading of cryptocurrency.
They are due to come into effect from July of next year.
The new measures seek to ensure that crypto assets can be traced, preventing money laundering, terrorist financing, and other crimes.
Major crypto service providers, which are often responsible for a high carbon footprint, will also have to disclose their energy consumption.
Those facilitating the trading of the currency will also be required to register with an oversight body.
The European Parliament approved the regulations, with 517 votes in favour, 38 against and 18 abstentions.
Some MEPs are of the view that cryptocurrencies are still in their infancy, with doubts over their long-term future.
Nevertheless, the European Union is seeking to regulate crypto markets, one of the first legislative bodies to do it.
When the Health Service Executive was hacked in 2021, those behind it demanded a crypto currency ransom.
There is also a climate element, where service providers would have to disclose their energy consumption.
European Commissioner for Financial Services Mairead McGuinness said it will allow the sector to evolve in a safer environment.
We need your consent to load this rte-player contentWe use rte-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences
Sinn Féin MEP Chris MacManus was involved in negotiating the new regulations.
He acted as shadow rapporteur for Left Group, meaning he negotiated on the group's behalf.
Speaking to RTÉ's European Parliament Report, Mr MacManus said that while he did not necessarily want to foster or encourage the growth of cryptocurrencies, he believed there was a need to regulate the market.
He also said that the future viability of cryptocurrencies was not certain.
MEPs largely agree that regulations will have to be updated on a continuous basis, in order to evolve with the crypto sector.
