Armenia’s central bank urged to draw up rules for the bitcoin market

Armenia’s Committee on State Revenues has asked the central bank to draft regulation of the cryptocurrency industry. Local media reported this, citing a statement by the head of the agency, Rustam Badasyan.

He said that in the absence of clear rules in the country, shadowy deals with digital assets are on the rise.

“There is already experience of cases where cryptocurrencies were used for both tax evasion and money laundering,” said Badasyan.

The official added that a sector-specific law would enable investigations into crimes linked to the circulation of cryptocurrency, since such cases have yet to progress.

Earlier, the executive director of the Armenian Banks’ Union, Seyran Sargsyan, said that financial institutions in the country do not work with cryptocurrencies and do not service these assets.

He pointed to the need for “customer identification of those working with electronic currency” and for preventing money laundering through cryptocurrencies.

In March 2021, Armenia’s representatives in the Eurasian Economic Union, along with other member states, failed to reach a consensus on the need to harmonise cryptocurrency regulation across their territories.

In January 2022, it emerged that Armenian authorities planned to locate a data centre for mining in the premises of the old Razdan Thermal Power Plant.

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