首次代幣發行與證券監理法制──以臺灣證券交易法下「證券」的定義為中心

Initial Coin Offerings and Securities Regulation: Focusing on the Definition of “Securities” under Taiwan’s Securities Exchange Act

本文探討首次代幣發行在臺灣證券法制下的解釋論與規範論問題，首先簡介其近年發展，並回顧各國法制—包括瑞士、新加坡、美國、加拿大、中國大陸、南韓目前立場。其次探討代幣在臺灣是否構成證券，得出原則上否定的結論。接著由智慧監理的角度，建議臺灣金管會將投資契約核定為證券，但可先核定構成投資契約的代幣為豁免證券，以一面適用證券詐欺規則規範ICO詐欺，一面暫緩適用發行與揭露規則，而兼顧監管與發展需求。

This paper explores the interpretative and normative problems of initial coin offerings (“ICO”) under Taiwan’s securities laws. It firstly briefs ICOs’ recent developments and reviews the current positions of many countries, including Switzerland, Singapore, the United States, Canada, Mainland China, and South Korea. It then discusses whether tokens are securities in Taiwan and finds a negative conclusion. It then, from the perspective of smart regulations, proposes Taiwan’s Financial Supervisory Commission to designate investment contracts as securities but designate tokens that constitute investment contracts as exempt securities. In this way, Taiwan can apply securities fraud rules to discipline ICO frauds on the one hand and postpone the application of issuance and disclosure rules on the other, which balances the regulatory and development needs.