Why cryptocurrencies are needed

The quote from the announcement is quite reassuring. According to it, “investments and transactions in cryptocurrencies are not necessarily criminal instruments”. However, they could still provide “new opportunities for those who engage in fraud or the concealment of other illegal activities”.

Hacker

According to news outlet Decrypt, the authority recognises the growing demand for cryptocurrencies as a means of payment. It is because of this that the agency “must also stay on top of both educational activities and the fight against financial crime”. Here’s a quote from Jeremy Sheridan, assistant director of the US Secret Service’s Office of Investigations, on the subject

Our commitment to fighting crime against the nation’s financial systems includes both educating the public about how digital assets work and cooperating to identify, arrest and prosecute those involved in digital asset crime.

Read also: FBI warned of Valentine's Day-related cryptocurrency fraud schemes.

Crypto market capitalisation in the last 90 days

At the moment, you can find basic information about the cryptocurrency market – such as what Bitcoin is, how blockchain works, how altcoins differ from one another and so on – on the information centre page. You can also find links to other US Secret Service publications related to crypto in one way or another.

Cryptocurrencies are of interest at the governmental level not only in the US, but also in South America. The day before, a draft regulation of digital assets passed an important stage of legalization in the Brazilian Federal Senate. The document will now be submitted for a vote by the country’s officials.

If the Senate approves the bill, it will be sent to the Chamber of Deputies, where it will be reviewed and voted on again. Following the passage in both houses of the Senate, the document will be presented to President Jair Bolsonaro for his signature. If so, and if President Bolsonaro approves the initiative, the status of crypto in Brazil will become much clearer.

Regulation should ensure that investors’ interests are protected by law. The misuse of cryptocurrencies through money laundering, terrorist financing and other similar activities would also fall under the law. The bill introduced by Senator Flavio Arns defines the concepts of digital assets and service providers, such as brokers and digital asset exchanges. It prohibits the Brazilian Securities and Exchange Commission from regulating the crypto market except for initial coin offerings (ICOs).

The bill proposes to jointly control cryptocurrency activities by Brazil’s Central Bank and tax authority Receita Federal, according to CryptoPotato. The federal government would have the power to appoint a head who would oversee and report on the direction of the entire industry.

Cryptocurrency aficionados

This will oblige cryptocurrency companies to notify the Brazilian Financial Supervisory Council of any suspicious transactions or money laundering cases. New offences involving virtual assets will be punishable by four to eight years in prison and a monetary fine. Mining companies that are able to achieve fully green power consumption will be exempt from taxation on the purchase of equipment and related components.

As you can see, this bill could give a significant boost to the adoption of crypto in South America. Recall that it was launched in El Salvador last year, when the country’s president Nayib Bukele legalised BTC as a means of payment.


We believe that such actions of Brazilian officials generally reflect the trend of cryptocurrency popularization that can be observed around the world. However, as we learned the day before, Mexican Senator Indira Kempis is also working on a bill that would recognize Bitcoin as an official tender. In doing so, he plans to submit it to Congress in 2022. This means that El Salvador will probably soon be joined by several other countries that will allow crypto payments.