Kazakhstan Crypto Crackdown Continues as Trader Is Jailed for 5 Years

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Trader bought and sold Bitcoin, Litecoin, and Ethereum between 2020 and 2022, court hears Last updated:

August 18, 2024 23:00 EDT

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Last updated:

August 18, 2024 23:00 EDT

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Per a post from the nation’s Supreme Court and a report from Inform Buro, the unnamed convict has also been banned from “issuing and trading” cryptoassets and “digital mining” for 10 years.

Kazakhstan Crypto Crackdown: Heavy Punishments for Offenders

The court also confiscated some $4.19 million worth of fiat and crypto from the man, which it said would be handed over to the Treasury.

The man, the court heard, “engaged in the illegal trading of cryptoassets,” namely Bitcoin (BTC), Litecoin (LTC), and Ethereum (ETH), on “foreign platforms.”

He traded coins on various crypto exchanges and made use of the Nixmoney, Qiwi, Perfect Money, and Payeer platforms, the court heard.

The man also illegally mined crypto, the court announced. However, it did not mention which coins the man used, or explain if he had used an illegal connection to the grid.

Prosecutors said the man was active on the platforms “between 2020 and 2022. He then “laundered part of his illegal income by purchasing real estate, which he then sold and rented out,” the prosecution explained.

Public prosecutors had demanded a six-plus-year jail sentence, telling the judge the miner should serve two and a half years in prison for conducting “illegal business activity.”

Prosecution officials also wanted to jail the man for a further four years for “money laundering” offenses.

The man, a resident of the Kostanay region in the north of the country, denied all charges during the trial.

Swiss International’s Boeing 777 makes unexpected landing in Kazakhstan due to medical incident pic.twitter.com/fECpN0MOmF

— Reuters (@Reuters) August 17, 2024

A Change of Attitude to Crypto?

Kazakhstan has previously taken a liberal and progressive stance on crypto and mining. However, following devastating blackouts in early 2022, Bitcoin miners found themselves the target of a powerful nationwide backlash.

The nation’s government has sought to crack down on illegal miners ever since. It has also threatened to punish traders who use unregistered crypto exchanges.

And the nation has insisted that crypto-related firms operate out of the Astana International Financial Center.

Kazakhstan’s crypto crackdown looks set to expand as government organs receive more power.

Earlier this month, the country’s anti-money laundering agency claimed that officials have thus far blocked illegal crypto transactions worth a total of $75.4 million.

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