We wish to engage with regulators to find appropriate ways of regulating the holding and transaction of assets on the blockchain. We see this as a necessary precondition to our Mainstream goal. The expectation is that the application of such regulation will be completely (or nearly so) automatic, and that the blockchain itself will ensure that the powers of regulators and governments are not abused. This raises the topics of jurisdiction: whose laws apply to a particular user or asset, how to specify regulations in a way that allows automation, and how regulations apply to smart contracts. For smart contracts, how can we tell in advance that the result of a given contract is certain to satisfy regulations? How can we handle regulations changing during a single contract? How does data protection privacy legislation impact blockchain. Is blockchain a good infrastructure for e-government?
