The Bitcoin Legalization Bill of Ukraine may soon be history after the people who were in the forefront decided to call it a day. According to reports, Bitcoin Embassy in Ukraine along with the leading Bitcoin exchange in the region, KUNA have been working on a draft law to make bitcoin legal in the country.
The main reason for Michael Chobanian dropping his fight towards legalizing bitcoin in the country is unknown. However, the news publications have quoted him saying that Bitcoin is already legal in the region and his fight doesn’t really make much sense. Reportedly, he also justified his actions by expressing doubts about companies setting up businesses in the country even if the most liberal laws on cryptocurrencies were passed by the Ukrainian parliament.
Michael Chobanian has been the face of this crusade to legalize bitcoin in Ukraine. Apart from being a bitcoin activist, He is also the founder of the country’s Bitcoin Embassy and the bitcoin exchange named, KUNA Bitcoin Agency. Located Kiev, Ukraine, KUNA Bitcoin Agency is the first bitcoin platform in the Eastern European region. The company has been involved in promoting and building the digital currency infrastructure in the region. KUNA has been operating the bitcoin exchange for a while now, selling and buying bitcoin since 2014. The platform also sells Bitcoin vouchers and operates a bitcoin ATM in the region as well.
According to Michael Chobanian, even if they manage to introduce favorable regulations for bitcoin, to be treated on par with other currencies, they won’t be making much difference. Especially with the country’s financial system in tatters and the presence of over 147 different taxes and currency regulations make it impossible as it is to operate any business, let alone bitcoin. In addition to a regulatory headache, there are government and law enforcement agencies to make matters even worse. By taking all these factors into account, he decided to drop the idea of pushing for bitcoin regulations in the region and allow the digital currency to thrive in its current form.
The draft law, framed by Michael Chobanian and his lawyers would have led to the legalization of bitcoin, allowing businesses to accept bitcoin payments and conducting transactions with it. At the same time, it would have bought the digital currency much closer to government interference. However, with Michael deciding to pull back from the initiative, we can expect bitcoin to stay free from these interventions much longer.
However, the banking sector in the region may be thinking along the same lines. Recently, PrivatBank tested out its new Bitcoin merchant pavement gateway, where merchants could receive bitcoin payments from customers, and receive the settlement in either Euros or Hryvnia. While it was just a trial run at that time, it may soon turn mainstream. With or without the draft law, the digital currency will definitely gain traction among the masses due to its decentralized nature.
Ref: ForkLog | Image: Russia Insider