Foreign Affairs Ministry (MFA) in Belarus admitted the country is witnessing high crypto-related crime prompting reconsideration of banning peer-based transactions.
The ministry confirmed initiating legal amendments to ban peer-to-peer (P2P) crypto-related transactions, including those involving Bitcoin (BTC).
Belarus Amending Legislation to Prohibit P2P Crypto Exchanges
The official statement conveyed on Sunday July 2, via Telegram, revealed the proposed legislation would prohibit individuals’ involvement in P2P crypto exchange.
MFA regretted that individuals turned Belarus into a courtyard for cybercrime, with local prosecutors witnessing high crypto involvement in illicit activities. The local prosecutors acknowledged the recent move to suppress 27 individuals identified with providing illegal crypto exchange services. The enforcement officers estimated the illegal proceeds since the onset of 2023 as 22 million rubles translating to $8.7 million.
The foreign ministry observed that fraudsters are leveraging the crypto P2P services as a conduit for cashing out illicit funds. The fraudsters are utilizing the P2P channel to convert and remit the funds to other parties in the criminal schemes.
Belarus Step up Fight Against Illicit Crypto-related Crime
The regulator restated that eliminating the illicit activity necessitates prohibiting individuals from executing the P2P services. Additionally, MFA stated that the legal amendments would allow exchanges within the platforms duly registered with the Hi-Tech Park (HTP).
The regulator is orienting the legislative innovations to bolster transparency in crypto exchange transactions. The amendments are poised to let the authority exercise oversight by allowing the citizens to execute transactions via HTP-registered exchanges only strictly.
MFA restated its objective in replicating the procedures deployed in foreign currencies exchange. Replicating the practice would ensure withdrawals impossible for proceeds from illegal activity. Enforcing the conditions would make Belarus unprofitable for the fraudsters to operate.
The move by the Belarus authority to initiate legal amendments to permit it to ban P2P crypto transactions is attracting criticism. Crypto enthusiasts are questioning the MFA’s capability to enforce the prohibition.
Crypto Advocates Doubt Viability of Belarus Enforcing P2P Ban
Crypto enthusiasts restate that Belarus is set on a collision path on the initial P2P exchange as written by Satoshi Nakamoto when creating Bitcoin. Jan3 chief executive Samson Mow indicated that banning P2P is easier said than executed. The Bitcoin advocate indicated that the move was unfeasible. Mow cited cases of continued utilization of P2P channels in countries that banned crypto transactions.
The Jan3 executive indicated that P2P Channels are still attracting high utilization despite the move by the country’s authority to prohibit crypto-related transactions in 2021.
Crypto advocates consider the pronouncements made by MFA as contradicting the recent legislation assented to by the Belarusian president. President Alexander Lukashenko approved the decree restating the formal support to free crypto circulation.
SureTradeGroup.com is not responsible for the content, accuracy, quality, advertising, products or any other content posted on the site. Some of the content on this site is paid content that is not written or posted by our writers or editors and the opinions expressed do not reflect the opinions of this website. Any disagreement you may have with brands or companies mentioned in articles will need to be taken care of directly with those specific brands and companies. The responsibility of anyone who may click links in our articles and ultimately sign up for that product or service is their own. Forex, Stocks, Cryptocurrencies, NFTs and Dogital Tokens are all a high-risk asset, investing in them can lead to losses. Readers should do their own research before taking any action.