Fears of a potential war between Ukraine and Russia have thrown the financial markets into disarray. Amid the looming threat, Ukraine has legalized cryptocurrencies in the Eastern European country.
What Happened: The Ukrainian parliament on Thursday voted in favor of a proposal to legalize virtual currencies in the country. The proposal was passed by majority votes cutting across party allegiances.
This was confirmed by Mykhailo Fedorov, Ukraine's Vice Prime Minister, in a tweet. Fedorov, who is also serving as the nation's Minister of Digital Transformation, said the Parliament has adopted the law on virtual assets, which will legalize crypto exchanges and cryptocurrencies.
Fedorov said this will help protect the assets Ukranians from possible fraud or abuse.
Ukraine is already in top-5 countries on cryptocurrency usage. Today we made one more step forward: Parliament adopted law on virtual assets! This will legalize crypto exchangers and cryptocurrencies, and Ukrainians could protect their assets from possible abuse or fraud.
— Mykhailo Fedorov (@FedorovMykhailo) February 17, 2022
Related Link: Why This Analyst Thinks Bitcoin Is Unlikely To Be Challenged By Altcoins
Why It's Important: Cryptocurrencies are legal in a majority of countries, while their usage as a payment mode is restricted in many.
El Salvador was the first nation to adopt Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) as the legal tender in September 2021.
Cryptocurrencies have been used for funding Ukraine's war preparations along the border. Several Ukrainian NGOs and volunteer groups have accepted cryptocurrency donations running to several thousands of dollars to fund war efforts, the Elliptic reported.
At last check, Bitcoin was seen down 7.19% to $41,047.
Related Link: 2022 Begins With A Whimper For Most Cryptos, But 2 Currencies Are Making Strong Gains
