Ukraine passes law legalizing cryptocurrencies

Amid a war with Russia, the Ukrainian government’s Ministry of Digital Transformation released a statement on Wednesday announcing that President Zelenskyy has signed the country’s “virtual assets” law. The law will provide a legal framework for introducing cryptocurrencies. Ukraine’s National Securities and Stock Market Commission will work on creating a national cryptocurrency policy in the country and licensing approved cryptocurrency providers.

The update comes after cryptocurrency donations to Ukraine’s war effort surpassed $100 million after an earlier version was rejected by Zelenskyy. Ukraine’s National Securities and Stock Market Commission will regulate the market and providers of virtual assets such as exchanges will be allowed to operate in the country. Ukrainian banks will also be able to open accounts for crypto companies, the Ministry of Digital Transformation said in a tweet.

Ukraine adopts new crypto law

The signed law describes what is considered a cryptocurrency. Additionally, the law states that the National Commission for Securities and the Stock Market will become the supervisor of digital currencies. Finally, there are regulations in the law about who can offer cryptocurrencies and how to register them in Ukraine.

An earlier version of this bill was proposed in September last year, but it had to be amended. The Ukrainian government first submitted the revised version of the bill on February 17. So now it has been signed by President Zelensky, making the law official.

The Deputy Minister of Digital Transformation Alex Bornyakov tweeted that the new crypto law will play a “vital role in Ukraine’s defense process”.

Cryptocurrency exchanges will now receive permits to allow them to operate, and the Ukrainian Ministry of Finance will work on changing the tax code to accommodate digital assets such as Bitcoin and Ethereum. The Ministry of Digital Transformation said the following in a statement:

“The signing of this law by the president is another important step to bring the crypto sector out of the shadows and launch a legal virtual asset market in Ukraine.”

$100 million in crypto donations already received

Ukraine has already received nearly $100 million in cryptocurrency donations since the country was invaded by Russia last month.

The vice president of Ukraine, Mykhailo Fedorov, is an outspoken advocate of cryptocurrency and crypto donations. He has ensured that Ukraine has crypto wallets and is able to receive the crypto donations. Perhaps the painful situation in Ukraine will accelerate crypto adoption considerably. The signing of this law is another important step to bring the crypto sector out of the shadows and launch a legal virtual asset market in Ukraine. 

Ukraine has been at the forefront of cryptocurrency adoption in recent weeks, amid one of the darkest periods in the country’s history. As of March 10, Ukraine has received more than $100 million in cryptocurrency donations, with more than half of the amount going directly to government-run wallets. So far, Ukraine is known to have spent at least $15 million on military equipment and other supplies. It also plans to launch an NFT collection to commemorate the war, though full details of this initiative have not yet been revealed.