Cryptocurrencies and Ukraine

First of all, Ukraine is one of the largest countries in Europe. The new president of the country, as well as the government, would like to develop the crypto market. Cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum are becoming more popular around the world.

Also, as part of the association agreement with the EU, Ukraine should solve the issues connected with crypto assets. By approving this draft law, Ukraine will receive financial assistance.

Recently, the parliament of Ukraine or Verkhovna Rada, as it is known in Ukrainian approved amendments that will affect the cryptocurrencies.

Lawmakers from the multi-partisan parliamentary group called “Blockchain4Ukraine” prepared this law.

Cryptocurrencies and international standards

The purpose of this law is to harmonize FATF standards with Ukrainian laws. The name of the draft law is the “prevention of the legalization of proceeds from crime and the financing of terrorism.”

It is worth mentioning, based on the information taken from parliament’s website, this parliament already passed this law. The next step and the last one depends on Ukraine’s president, who must sign the law.

The bill incorporates the definition of “virtual assets”. According to this digital bill, the currency has a value and it is possible to trade or transfer crypto-assets for payment.

Ukraine’s anti-money laundering (AML) legislation introduced the standards for virtual assets. These standards were adopted this year by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). Several months ago, the members of the inter-governmental organization agreed to monitor the implementation of the crypto requirements.

In Ukraine, the Ministry of Digital Transformation is up to this ministry to monitor the situation. This ministry will have to regulate the circulation of virtual assets in Ukraine. Moreover, all crypto operations will be subject to different levels of financial monitoring. This will depend on the amount and destination of each transaction.

Other countries should also adopt crypto regulations. This way, it will be easier to develop the crypto mining as well as crypto-related activities.