Ukraine is going to legalize the cryptocurrency market. The Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky signed a law on Wednesday about digital assets, which will establish a legal and regular market for Bitcoin, Ether and other virtual currencies. The law also allows you to take advantage of the many crypto donations that the nation has received since the Russian invasion.
Ukraine close to legalization of the cryptocurrency market
The law signed by Zelensky was not born in response to the Russian invasion. The proposal was passed on February 17 in the Kyiv parliament. But this was the second attempt by the Ukrainian legislative body to regulate cryptocurrencies in the country. In fact, Parliament had approved a first version last September, which President Zelensky had blocked with a presidential veto.
Part of the reason for the rejection was the significant cost of establishing a crypto market regulator, while the newly signed legislation takes advantage of the National Commission on Security and the Stock Market to check transactions.
“From now on Ukrainian and foreign cryptocurrency exchanges will operate legally and banks will open accounts for crypto companies. It is an important step towards developing a market for digital assets in Ukraine ”comments the ministry of digital transformation in a tweet.
Crypto and the Russian invasion
Cryptocurrencies, like any other digital asset, from social networks to hacker collectives, are also playing a fundamental role in the Ukrainian conflict. The digital front of the conflict has seen several interventions, including operations with virtual currencies.
Some Ukrainians are using the blockchain to protect your savings, now that the country’s banks are under threat from the Kremlin. In addition, the country has received over $ 100 million in crypto donations in recent weeks.
But on the other hand, it appears that Russia would have used cryptocurrencies for circumvent sanctions internationals imposed after the invasion of Ukraine.
Although the cryptocurrencies have never been illegal in Ukraine, officially regulating the market allows new investment opportunities. And at the same time it also allows you to evaluate the possibility of including digital assets in the process of taxation on a permanent basis.
According to TripleA, the 12.7% of the Ukrainian population used cryptocurrencies before the Russian invasion. And the percentage could have increased.
Ukrainians certainly have other thoughts on their mind these weeks, but President Zelensky’s approval could lead to make better use of crypto donations received and give more resources to the Ukrainians. Or at least that’s what we hope for. We will keep you updated about it.