Key Points
- Belarus has cited high crypto crimes as a motivation for a regulatory decision that might see peer-to-peer crypto transactions banned in the country.
- Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs is already working on legal recommendations to ban peer-to-peer crypto transactions
Belarus is seeking to ban peer-to-peer crypto transactions, putting it on an extended list of countries that are unsatisfied with an unregulated crypto industry. The country’s Ministry of foreign affairs is working on a recommendation to prohibit some crypto activities there.
Rising crypto crimes pushing Belarus to ban peer-to-peer transactions
A July 2 report from the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs indicates that the Ministry is working on recommendations that might see the government curtailing some crypto use cases like peer-to-peer crypto transactions. The legislation is motivated by increased crypto crimes in the country and globally.
The Ministry cited a spike in the cybercrime rate in Belarus, prompting it to take extra steps to protect its citizens. The report cited that local prosecutors have suppressed the activity of 27 citizens for providing “illegal crypto exchange services. It alleged that the group of citizens had amassed over $27 million in illegal revenues.
An excerpt from the report reads.
“Crypto P2P services are in demand among fraudsters who cash out, convert stolen funds, and transfer money to organizers or participants in criminal schemes.”
The regulator added:
“The MFA is working on legislative innovations prohibiting crypto exchange transactions between individuals. For transparency and control, citizens will be allowed to conduct such financial transactions only through the HTP exchanges.”
The regulator also added that it plans to introduce such measures for free exchanges. It stated that these efforts would make withdrawing money from illicit activities impossible, making it unprofitable for fraudsters to operate in Belarus.
The actions by Belarus to ban some crypto activities like peer-to-peer transactions come at a time when other nations are increasing their oversight of the industry for similar concerns. However, it doesn’t go without noticing that these countries lack designated regulatory frameworks for the crypto industry.
Countries like the US are cracking down on crypto, while others like Belgium and Canada are pushing away virtual assets providers for not registering with them.
However, it is notable that while these countries are increasing their oversight of crypto, they are working on crypto regulations. The US has been calling crypto industry stakeholders to talks directed to developing good regulations while the EU countries are waiting for the effection of the MiCA legislation.
Keep watching Fintech Express for more updates on crypto and other fintech-related developments.