Boost VC founder Adam Draper has launched an online petition against the current version of the BitLicense proposal, which he says will kill innovation in a key financial center. The crux of his petition says:
"The Department of Financial Services should simplify and remove the barriers that could kill innovation and economic growth in New York."
He echoes other feedback, most recently from the Bitcoin Industry Working Group, which points out that under the current proposal, some businesses would require both a standard money transmission licenses as well as a BitLiense. This, as just one example, would cause excessive hardship for startups. He also argues:
"The rules would require information collection on customers that is unprecedented on the state level, with more invasive reporting and recordkeeping than that even required by the federal government. These requirements would fracture the nation’s well-established anti-Money Laundering regime making it nearly impossible for businesses to comply."
He recommends the following three changes:
1. Limit information gathering to that which is required at the federal level.
2. Remove duplicate federal and State regulations.
3. "A Sandbox of innovation in the financial markets", where products can be tested out by a smaller group of people who understand the risks.
The petition has thus far garnered 46 out of 100 targeted signatures.
