Ulrich ‘Ueli’ Maurer is one of seven members of the Swiss Federal Council. The body that holds the executive power in the country is headed by a rotating presidency shared among the councillors. The position is largely ceremonial and symbolic, but the president has one important role – his vote can tip the scales when the council is divided on important decisions. On Dec. 5, Maurer was elected by the Swiss parliament for a one-year term in 2019 with the impressive support of 201 out of 209 members.

The 68-year-old trained accountant has been credited for his policies as head of the Federal Department of Finance controlling the public budget, Swissinfo reports. Maurer has also demonstrated capability to understand the changes that are taking place in the financial sector and the need to adopt liberal regulations for the industry built around blockchain technologies and cryptocurrencies. Digitalization is among the president’s top priorities as well.

Over the past few years, Switzerland has gradually become one of the most crypto-friendly jurisdictions in Europe and on the global stage. Last month, the Swiss government announced a comprehensive strategy recognizing distributed ledger technologies as an important development for the financial sector and aiming to build a legal foundation for their implementation.

The document calls for the adoption of amendments to the current laws that would improve Switzerland’s status as a crypto-friendly nation. Among other proposals, the strategy focuses on the integration of decentralized digital currencies into the country’s economic and financial infrastructure. That’s an emphasis that hundreds of crypto startups based in the Swiss Crypto Valley in Zug should certainly appreciate.

Sourced through Scoop.it from: news.bitcoin.com