A month after the countrys parliament approved a law to begin preparing a framework for the regulation as well as management of cryptocurrency assets like Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH), Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has now officially promulgated the structure upon which the nation will build local markets for BTC along with various other altcoins, thereby legalizing the emerging industry.
A new digital age for Ukraine
In the words of Ukraines Deputy Prime Minister of Digital Transformation, Mykhailo Fedorov, all market participants shall be given legal protection under the law and the chance to make informed decisions which would be based on transparent, open and fair consultations with local government agencies.
The legislation establishes the legal status, categorization, ownership, and regulators of digital assets, in addition to the requirements for cryptocurrency service providers to successfully register themselves. The countrys Stock Market and National Commission on Securities market will oversee the burgeoning digital space. Moreover, exchanges shall be legally permitted to operate, and banks will reportedly open accounts for them too.
As such, the state body is in charge of developing and implementing virtual asset policy, regulating the sequence of digital asset circulation, providing permits to the service providers of these assets, and finally conducting supervision and financial surveillance concerning this sector.
Good news in a bad time
Of course, one of the main reasons as to why Ukraine has legalized crypto is because of the ongoing conflict with Russia. While the war has unfortunately still not ended as of this time, it has nevertheless prompted crypto donations to flow into Ukraine from across the globe. In fact, just during the last month, the country has received at least $100 million in cryptocurrency donations from those who wish to assist its defense and humanitarian endeavors.
Perhaps it was because of the immense pressure of fighting back against the Russians combined with the fact that so many donations were indeed digital assets (including NFTs that finally prompted President Zelensky to legalize crypto. After all, he had initially rejected such a proposal back in September of last year.
In any case, one can only hope for a swift end to the ongoing conflict that has already claimed so many innocent lives. Regarding crypto however, Ukraines Ministry of Finance is presently working on amendments which will be added to the nations civil and tax codes in order to properly launch the digital assets market for Ukraines citizens.