Plusieurs sites Web d'échange de crypto supprimés au Kazakhstan

Les autorités financières du Kazakhstan ont ciblé au moins cinq plateformes en ligne échangeant des crypto-monnaies en dehors de la loi. Documents, équipement informatique, et des portefeuilles de crypto-monnaie ont été saisis lors de perquisitions dans le nord du pays.

Kazakhstan’s Financial Watchdog Goes After Unlicensed Crypto Exchange Services

The Financial Monitoring Agency (FMA) of the Republic of Kazakhstan has dismantled a group involved in the illegal exchange of cryptocurrencies. Its members organized the trading through several websites such as kzobmen.com, 1wm.kz, kazobmen.ru, wm007.kz, and kz-exchange.com.

As part of the operation in Kostanay region, searches were carried out at six locations, in which items incriminating the operators of the platforms were seized, the watchdog said in a press release. Its employees confiscated a number of laptops, cell phones, and flash memory sticks, as well as banking and accounting documents.

The authority alleged that the organizers of the online exchangers had received “especially large-scale” income from their business undertaking, without specifying the amount. It also did not reveal how many persons were in the group or their identities.

Investigators were able to establish that they had two crypto wallets at Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange, with a combined balance of $6,000 dans les actifs numériques. Access to these wallets has been temporarily restricted, the FMA noted. Plus que $200,000 worth of coins were found in wallets with other exchanges.

A pre-trial investigation is underway, according to the announcement. The Financial Monitoring Agency also reminded that these types of activities are allowed only under the special legal regime of the Astana International Financial Center (AIFC).

The Kazakhstan government has been taking steps to regulate the country’s crypto market, which has been growing since the Central Asian nation became a bitcoin mining hotspot following China’s crackdown on the industry in 2021.

In order to operate an exchange platform legally, crypto companies need to obtain regulatory approval and register with Kazakhstan’s financial hub. En octobre, 2022, Binance was autorisé as a provider of crypto exchange and custody services. Earlier that month, it convenu to share information about crypto-related crime with the authorities in Nur-Sultan.

Do you think Kazakhstan will continue to clamp down on unlicensed crypto trading? Dites-nous dans la section commentaires ci-dessous.

Lubomir Tassev

Lubomir Tassev est un journaliste d'Europe de l'Est féru de technologie qui aime la citation de Hitchens: "Être écrivain, c'est ce que je suis, plutôt que ce que je fais. Outre la crypto, blockchain et fintech, la politique internationale et l'économie sont deux autres sources d'inspiration.

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