Ukraine legalized bitcoin as the cryptocurrency slowly goes global

September 13, 2021: -Ukraine is the fifth country in as many weeks to lay down some ground rules for the cryptocurrency market, a sign that governments worldwide are realizing that bitcoin is here to stay.

In an almost unanimous vote, the Ukrainian Parliament adopts a law that legalizes and regulates cryptocurrency. The bill was set in motion in the year 2020, and it heads to President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Crypto in Ukraine had been present in a legal gray area until today. Locals were permitted to buy and exchange virtual currencies, but companies and exchanges dealing in crypto were closely watched by law enforcement.

According to the Kyiv Post, authorities are trending to take a combative stance when it comes to virtual cash, regarding it as a “scam,” raiding crypto-related businesses, and “often confiscating expensive equipment without any grounds.”

In August, the Security Service of Ukraine blocked a network of “clandestine cryptocurrency exchanges” running in the capital city of Kyiv. The SBU claims that these exchanges were facilitating money laundering and providing anonymity of transactions.

In a first for the Verkhovna Rada, lawmakers have taken a stab at defining core terminology in the world of crypto. If the president signs, virtual assets, digital wallets, and private keys are terms that will be enshrined in Ukrainian law. The new legislation is now spelling out certain protections against fraud for those who own bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

Unlike El Salvador’s move to adopt bitcoin as legal tender, Ukraine’s crypto law does not facilitate the rollout of bitcoin as a form of payment, nor does it put it on an equal footing with the hryvnia, the national currency of the country.

However, a vote by the former nuclear power is part of a broader push by Kyiv to lean into bitcoin.

By 2022, the country is planning to open the cryptocurrency market to businesses and investors, according to the Kyiv Post. Top state officials also tout their crypto street cred to investors and venture capital funds in Silicon Valley.