Ukraine’s President Signs Virtual Assets Bill Legalizing Cryptos

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has signed a virtual assets bill legalizing cryptocurrencies. Zelensky signed the bill despite the ongoing crisis caused by the Russian attack.

Ukraine Legalizes Digital Assets

In a Wednesday statement, the Ministry of Digital Transformation revealed that President Zelensky had signed a virtual assets bill into law. The newly signed law acknowledges digital assets’ ownership, classification, legal status, and regulatory authorities. It also dictates the registration requirements for crypto services providers with the government.

The statement revealed that Ukraine’s National Commission on Securities and Stock Market would be the top regulator of the assets. Per the Digital Transformation Ministry, exchanges will also operate freely, with banks allowed to provide full services.

 The statement also added that the Ministry Of Finance was working on amending the tax rates in the country. After the new tax structure encompassing digital assets is out, the virtual assets market will be assumed to be fully launched.

“The signing of this law by the president is another important step towards bringing the crypto sector out of the shadows and launching a legal market for virtual assets in Ukraine,” noted the Ministry of Digital Transformation.

The Story So Far

Ukraine has been dealing with the dilemma of regulating cryptocurrencies for a long time. Before the start of the current crisis, the government had not yet accepted the use of cryptos to settle payments. However, after the invasion, on Feb 24 by Russia, people started requesting its military to accept crypto donations.

The country complied with peoples’ requests later on after several NGOs had received donations in crypto already. The country has been given over $100M in donations, which could have melted the hearts of lawmakers from other nations. The crypto space offered even NFTs towards the welfare of the nation.

The current bill passed through Ukraine’s parliament on Feb 17 after President Zelensky rejected it last September.

According to the government’s statement on Feb 17, the state body is tasked with “shaping and pursuing a policy in the field of virtual assets; determining the order of circulation of virtual assets; issuing permits to virtual asset service providers; and carrying out supervision and financial monitoring in this area,”

Now Ukraine has joined the small percentage of countries with functional crypto regulatory structures. Since the virtual assets showed the world how they could aid in international remittance during Ukraine’s crisis, its regulatory stance may influence other nations. 

Crypto Regulation and Adoption Increases Worldwide

Crypto regulation has been a major topic among lawmakers of different countries in the past few months. The US released an EO on crypto calling for better means to regulate the assets through a joint effort between authorities. The EO eyes to slingshot the US to be a leader in crypto adoption and innovation.

Other countries like Russia, India, and the EU are also pushing forward with their crypto regulatory developments. Per a crypto.news report, the EU rejected a proposed ban on PoW cryptos a few days ago. Additionally, it plans on allowing the trading of the assets at a regulated means.

 Russia is also in the final steps of drafting its crypto regulatory structure that it began making last year. These developments are friendly to the crypto market and may influence other nations as the involved countries are large economies. However, other nations may take different stances; therefore, it’s best to keep updated on global crypto regulatory developments.