Key Takeaways:
- Belarus is preparing to allow financial funds to invest in cryptocurrency.
- The scheme is one of a flurry of legislative proposals aimed at luring such businesses to the country.
The Ministry of Finance has proposed amendments to attract investment capital to Belarus. Despite a statutory framework for collective investments, the country has yet to register a single fund.
Belarus is placed third in Eastern Europe by Chainalysis’ crypto adoption index, after Russia and Ukraine, due to significant peer-to-peer activity.
According to the finance ministry, the market for ‘digital signs (tokens),’ the legal term for cryptocurrencies, is rapidly expanding. The Ministry of Finance has drafted a resolution to revise its decree on investment funds’ securities market activities. It intends to allow the funds to act as securities dealers and residents of the Belarus High-Tech Park (HTP).
The latter is in charge of a specific legal framework aimed at assisting the country’s digital economy, which includes the cryptocurrency sector. Belarus welcomed cryptocurrency firms in the spring of 2018 when it passed a decree titled “On the Development of the Digital Economy.”
Despite Lukashenko’s hinting in March of a possible tightening of regulations, Belarusian officials have recently indicated that the authorities in Minsk have no intention of adopting stricter rules for the crypto space, even as the country’s closest ally, Russia, is discussing a proposal to ban a variety of crypto-related activities.
