Venezuela’s New Crypto Legal Framework Now Official

In the past, Venezuela has put forward a new bill that would involve cryptocurrency. Fast forward today, the bill has officially come into force. It is meant to establish a digital currency legal framework for the industry.

Sovereign Crypto Asset

According to the official report, it was the Constituent National Assembly that initially approved the set of rules. The latter, in particular, will cover crypto miners, entrepreneurs, and even regular traders. The assembly is basically an alternative to the country’s very own Parliament and was created sometime in 2017.

The document is titled “Constituent Decree on the Integral System of Crypto Assets.” It reportedly offers at least 63 articles and, at the same time, offers short definitions of key digital currency terms. This also includes definitions referring to mining, blockchain technology, and cryptography, among many others.

By default, the aforementioned document introduces the idea of a sovereign cryptocurrency asset. In other words, the crypto should not only be issued in Venezuela but should also be authorized by the country’s very own government.

Empowering Sunacrip

The bill, in particular, empowers the so-called Sunacrip, which is a national digital currency watchdog established last year. It is tasked to inspect the entirety of cryptocurrency-related commercial activities in Venezuela. As far as Article 11 is concerned, the body must be able to monitor digital exchanges and miners – including other financial services – that could probably serve as intermediaries in the country’s crypto space.

The same article also suggests the idea that Sunacrip will be the one in-charge in the creation, emission, transformation, exchange, and commercialization of all digital currency activities in the country. Also, this part of the document will give it the ability to control any cryptocurrency platform – and it does not care if it is international or local and centralized or decentralized.

Moreover, the decree defines the different registration procedures aimed at crypto exchanges, mining entities, and even wallets. Take for example Article 28, which fully describes and introduces a variety of licenses specifically meant for crypto startups. Also, these licenses will greatly depend on these companies’ trading volumes, crypto asset types, and other criteria.

By essence, the Sunacrip will consider all of these when it comes to licenses. It will also be in-charge in establishing the different public fees for digital currency companies at its discretion. With the new bill in place, it is interesting to see just how much of an impact it would bring to the country’s crypto space.