Another step forward: Belarus to permit institutional investment in digital assets

Belarus, a landlocked country in Eastern Europe has maintained a progressive crypto narrative over the years. The country publicly explored a potential move into mining digital coins like Bitcoin in February last year. Fast forward to 2022, the government made amendments to lure institutional traction concerning digital assets within its region.

Digital signs 

The Ministry of Finance for public consultations had put forward a proposal to permit investment funds to put money into digital currencies. For preliminary public consultations, the ministry proposed two amendments: Here’s the translated version:

Source: minfin.gov

The executives acknowledged the rise in digital assets within Belarus as well as across the world. The market for “digital signs (tokens),” the legal term used to describe cryptocurrencies, has been growing at a fast pace, the finance ministry observed.

As per the vision, the ministry drafted a resolution to amend activities in the securities market about investment funds. It allowed the funds to simultaneously operate as securities dealers and residents of the Belarus High-Tech Park (HTP). This group incorporated a special legal regime established to facilitate the country’s digital economy, including the crypto sector.

Tax exemptions for entities working with collective investments were extended until 1 January 2031. The note added:

“Project proposals can be submitted in the period from 02.02.2022 to 11.02.2022 in the electronic form to [email protected].”

Importance

Why the need? Well, not a single fund was registered in the country so far despite a regulatory framework for “collective investments”. Nonetheless, the aforementioned move could change the flow.

Overall, Belarus holds a significant position within the cryptocurrency world. It ranked third in Eastern Europe, after Russia and Ukraine, in terms of crypto adoption as well as strong peer-to-peer activity.