Ukrainian passes law on recognition and regulation of cryptocurrencies – News Sept 09

The Ukrainian parliament has passed a law regulating domestic cryptocurrency and cryptocurrency exchanges operated from the country.

On September 8, the parliament of Ukraine passed the draft law “On Virtual Assets,” which legally recognized cryptocurrencies in the country for the first time. The law builds on existing standards developed by the intergovernmental political organization, the Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering (FATF).

The Ukrainian Ministry of Digital Transformation will be tasked with overseeing the implementation of the new regulation on virtual assets and managing the industry’s growth following “international standards.”

Anastasia Bratko of the Ministry of Digital Transformation said the law allows companies to open virtual asset markets in Ukraine and allows banks to “open accounts for crypto companies.

“Ukrainians will also be able to declare their income with virtual assets,” she said, adding that the law guarantees “judicial rights that protect the rights of the owners of virtual assets.”

A statement from the ministry stressed that “the country will receive additional budget tax revenue, which crypto companies will pay,” adding:

“The adopted standards set the rules for service providers concerning the circulation of virtual assets and contribute to the elimination of market darkness.”

Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs) “must have impeccable business reputations” and must disclose their ownership structure to determine their ultimate beneficial owners. The VASPs must also maintain internal anti-money laundering measures.

Ukrainian Deputy Minister for Digital Transformation Oleksander Bornyakov highlighted the provisions of the law to “attract foreign exchange to the Ukrainian market,” adding:

“It will be a strong impetus for the further development of the crypto sector in Ukraine. Banks will open accounts for them and transact a new asset class. I am sure that society, companies, and the state will benefit from the legalization of this new branch of the economy. “

Related: The Ukrainian ministry is considering piloting a digital currency to pay employees.

Last month, Mikhail Fedorov, Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister and head of the country’s Ministry of Digital Transformation, announced that his ministry was investigating the use of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) for wage payments in an early test of the technology.

In July, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a law that allows the country’s central bank to issue CBDCs.