The Parliament of Ukraine has voted to legalize Bitcoin (BTC) and crypto, not as a legal tender but to regulate and monitor the trade of the digital currency. According to news on the Ukraine government official website, the approval was pushed by 272 votes that were received in support of the bill.
The passage of this bill is despite the mounting pressure for war from neighboring Russia. The ongoing crisis started in 2014 and the leadership of both countries has refused to hold a dialogue for a peace treaty. Recently, this week, the heat has gotten even hotter for Ukraine.
Amidst this brewing war, an updated bill for the legalization was passed to the floor of the Ukrainian parliament, Verkhovna Rada, on Thursday. A bill had previously been presented in October last year but had been returned by President Volodymyr Zelensky, pointing out a few adjustments that were needed to be made.
At the time, it was noted that funding for the bill was not added to the budget. The president suggested that the National Securities Commission (NSC) of Ukraine, the Ministry of Digital Transformation, and the National Bank as the regulatory bodies to legalize BTC.
The bill has now been approved and incorporated the president’s suggestions. The state’s National Commission on Securities is now charged with the responsibility of overseeing the activities of the digital assets market participants and issuing licenses for Bitcoin and other virtual currency trade.
According to a Twitter post by Mykhailo Fedorov, Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine, the country has made a further move towards the crypto ecosystem, complementing its recognition amongst the first 5 nations with active cryptocurrency trade.
The minister affirmed that the Parliament has accepted the bill on virtual investments and this will in turn help regulate digital assets and crypto exchange firms, and protect the citizens against hackers.
High-Speed Regularization for Digital Assets
Progressive regulations fast becoming the order of the day as many nations are daily exploring ways to embrace or regulate digital currencies. Ukraine’s core opposition, Russia recently chose the path to regulate legalized crypto and is currently testing its CBDC, Digital Ruble.
India is also on the path to crypto legalization and as a means of laying structures for the regulation process, the government has imposed a 30% tax on digital assets which will be effective from the next fiscal year which starts in April.
cmb.com 