Brazilian President, Jair Bolsonaro, has approved a bill of crypto industry regulations most recently passed by the nation’s Senate and Chamber of Deputies.
Jair Bolsonaro, the president of Brazil set to leave office on Dec. 31, has signed a bill aimed at legalizing the use of crypto as a payment method within the country. Bolsonaro’s office said that the president had signed bill 14.478 into law following endorsement from the nation’s Chamber of Deputies in a publication of the federal government of Brazil’s official journal on December 22. On November 29, the parliamentary body completed the process of recognizing crypto payments by sending the law to the president’s desk.
The bill’s wording states that, unlike El Salvador, Brazil would not allow citizens to utilize cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) as legal cash there. However, the recently approved law defines a number of digital currencies as acceptable payment methods in Brazil. It also provides a licensing system for companies that provide services related to virtual assets and imposes fines for fraud involving digital assets.
The declaration from Bolsonaro made no mention of which government agency may be in charge of overseeing cryptocurrency payments. However, much as in the US, Brazil’s Securities and Exchange Commission is responsible for overseeing digital assets that are classified as securities. As a result of the demise of FTX, the law also included rules mandating exchanges to differentiate between user and company assets.
In 180 days, probably in June 2023, the crypto legislation will go into force. Soon after Bolsonaro leaves office, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, also known as “Lula,” will take over as president on January 1. From 2003 to 2010, Lula presided over Brazil as president. In the past, he has advocated for the use of blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies.
Other Nations Interested In The Same Project
Following FTX’s collapse last month, similar rules are being pushed through other jurisdictions at a rapid pace. A similar plan that would transfer industry oversight from the Commodity Futures Trading Regulatory Organization to the Financial Services Authority is being debated in Indonesia. Canada’s Securities Administrators established rules last week banning the provision of cryptocurrency margin trading to Canadian clients.
