Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a new treaty aiming to legalize cryptocurrency. What is the law and how will it change things?
Amidst war with Russia for resisting invasion, Ukraine is establishing a new legal framework. It is going to regulate the use of crypto tokens. The nation’s parliament passed the law in February and President Zelenskyy signed it on Wednesday.
What is Ukraine’s new law on cryptocurrency?
The new law on crypto makes the legal classification, status, regulators, and owners of virtual assets, in addition to establishing registration needs for service providers. “From now on, foreign and Ukrainian cryptocurrencies exchanges will operate legally and banks will open accounts for crypto companies. It is an important step towards the development of the virtual assets market in Ukraine,” tweeted the nation’s digital ministry.
With this law, Ukraine’s National Securities and Stock Market Commission will regulate cryptocurrencies. They will have powers as the financial watchdog under this law. Additionally, Ukrainians have been actively using crypto and the nation has been discussing legalizing them. However, the war with Russia was the trigger. According to reports, Ukraine received over $100 million in donations but, they are in the form of cryptocurrencies. “Ukraine’s first crypto exchange, Kuna, will no longer be limited to helping the country spend the donations directly with crypto-friendly suppliers. But help converts crypto to much-needed fiat,” revealed a TechCrunch report. It also added that it is partnering with Bahamas-based FTX. They will help in converting it to fiat and depositing it to the National Bank of Ukraine.
Crypto status around the world
Globally, El-Salvador was the first to adopt crypto into their economy with their legal Bitcoin tender in 2021. However, they have been facing problems such as identity fraud, technical glitches, and a conflict between Bitcoin’s decentralized nature and the country’s authoritarian rule. Several governments are trying to incorporate private cryptocurrencies such as Ethereum and Bitcoin or legalized currencies backed by the state.
As per India’s 2022-2023 Union Budget, there is a 30 percent tax on virtual assets including crypto, legitimizing NFTs and crypto. In addition to this, they are also planning to create a law for regulating private crypto tokens and launching a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDCPP) backed by the RBI.