Ukrainian cryptocurrency exchange Kuna declined a request from the Department of Financial Investigations of the Republic of Belarus, which sought information about the non-profit organization “Belarusian Solidarity Foundation” that pays compensation in Bitcoin. This was reported by the founder of the trading platform, Mikhail Chobanian.
The department suspects the NGO of conducting suspicious financial operations under the guise of charitable aid.
Source: Michael Chobanian’s Telegram channel
According to the department, funds linked to the foundation, totaling 2.13 BTC after a series of transactions, ended up at two addresses owned by Kuna.
“There are grounds to believe that the sums were split and redirected to simulate payments to individuals, i.e., the recipients of the funds were effectively absent and the resources were withdrawn by the organizers of the fundraising campaign using Kuna to enrich themselves, and the described pattern of moving cryptocurrency was used to create the appearance of real charitable payments for subsequent legalization of funds obtained by criminal means,” the department’s letter states.
In its conclusion, the department cites the criminal code on fraud, noting that “without identifying the owners of Bitcoin addresses, it is not possible to provide a correct criminal-legal assessment of the actions in question”.
The Department of Financial Investigations of Belarus asked Kuna’s management for information on the transaction participants.
“If the recipients of the cryptocurrency are identified, please indicate whether Kuna Exchange conducted, on their behalf, operations converting the received cryptocurrency into cash or other property,” the document states.
However, Mikhail Chobanian categorically refused to cooperate with the agency.
“We, like the rest of the civilized world, do not support violence and a rejection of dialogue with opponents. And, unlike our colleagues from Chinese platforms, we do not leak information about our users,” he said.
Together with the foundation, Chobanian created a crowdfunding page on Kuna:
“I openly declare my support for the brotherly people. I have contacted the organizers of the BYSOL foundation and we have created a crowdfunding page for them. Now helping Belarusians has become easier,” added the exchange’s founder.
ForkLog’s co-founder of the Belarusian Solidarity Foundation, Yaroslav Likhachevsky, said that at the end of August the Belarusian State Control Committee requested access to information about his bank accounts, as well as those of his relatives and colleagues.
“The outgoing authorities are trying to use all tools at their disposal to hinder solidarity and the work of the foundations. I sincerely thank Mikhail for informing us about the letter and for deciding to support us in the fight for a free Belarus,” Likhachevsky noted.
Back in September, the Belarusian Solidarity Foundation, based in the Netherlands, began paying compensation in Bitcoin to Belarusians fired from enterprises for active civic stance and participation in protests against the government of Alexander Lukashenko.
As of 20 September, the total amount of funds paid out by the foundation in cryptocurrency stood at €344,000.
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