Ukraine is the fifth country in as many weeks to lay down ground rules for the cryptocurrency market, a sign that governments around the world are realizing that bitcoin is here to stay. In a nearly unanimous vote, the Ukrainian Parliament adopted a law that legalizes and regulates cryptocurrency. The bill was set in motion in 2020 – and it now heads to the desk of President Volodymyr Zelensky. If signed by the president, virtual assets, digital wallets, and private keys are terms that will become part of Ukrainian law. Unlike El Salvador’s move this week to adopt bitcoin as legal tender, Ukraine’s crypto law does not facilitate the rollout of bitcoin as a form of payment, nor does it put it on an equal footing with the hryvnia, the country’s national currency.
Ukraine joins a long list of countries folding bitcoin into national law. In addition to El Salvador, Cuba — a notoriously conservative government still set in traditional Marxist ways — passed a law to recognize and regulate cryptocurrencies, citing reasons of socio-economic interest.