The Main Countries that Actually Banned Crypto

Although there are more nations that fully ban crypto, around the 30s, here are the main countries that have actually, fully banned cryptocurrencies:

· Bangladesh
· Egypt
· Iraq
· Qatar
· China
· Colombia
· Indonesia
· Nepal
· Morocco

If you are often tuned in to global news on financial markets, you have most definitely heard of news related to cryptocurrency regulation discussions in several countries. And with those discussions, comes the extreme proposal that most territories have gone through at least once: the idea of fully banning cryptocurrencies.

Although this topic seems to circle around back and forth in different nations, with Russia becoming the most popular recently, it’s hard to tell whether crypto assets have actually been banned in such areas. That’s because, most of the time, the ban doesn’t go through and when it does it’s usually in countries that have a narrower influence on media and global interest.

So with that in mind, this article gives a quick summary of ten countries that have actually banned crypto, and what has led to their decisions.

Bangladesh

---

With a relatively big population of 160 million citizens as of 2021, Bangladesh fully banned any cryptocurrency storage and transaction last year, in June. The choice was stated by Bangladesh’s central bank, determining that any financial institution operating in the country should cease to provide any services related to the storage, purchase or transactions of digital assets.

The reasoning was simple - since digital currencies are not legal tender nor issued by central banks, they are therefore too volatile and dangerous to Bangladesh’s citizens to partake in any activity. Labelled by the country as “virtual currencies,” Bangladesh’s government provided a series of reports on the alleged dangers of cryptocurrencies to reason with politicians and the population.

Egypt

---

Egypt currently accounts for a population of 105 million people; 105 million citizens that cannot store, buy or trade cryptocurrencies at all.
That’s because in 2018 the local government and its central bank labelled cryptocurrency transactions as haram, meaning anti-Islamic and therefore illegal. It is the first ban of its kind on digital assets, where a nation relates to its religious foundation to prohibit certain transactions.

With the order issued by Dar al-Ifta, the main Islamic legislator in the country, the reasoning was similar to that of Bangladesh - cryptos are not issued by central banks and highly volatile.

Iraq

---

With a population of just over 40 million, Iraq banned cryptocurrencies by issuing a statement last year fully banning the storage and use of digital assets. Those who decided to continue using the assets would be punished by anti-money-laundering laws (AMLs) and subject to prison.

Despite the ban, plenty of crypto users and enthusiasts argue that the crypto use and mining community is still alive and well in the country, just kept under the wraps.

Qatar

---

The Qatar 2022 World Cup is soon approaching, but unfortunately cryptocurrencies won’t be part of local transactions as tourists flood into the 3 million people city. That’s because digital assets are fully banned in Qatar and happened so somewhat recently.

In December of 2020, at the height of the first half of crypto’s latest bull run, the local financial regulatory agency known as the QFCRA declared that cryptocurrencies are fully banned in the nation except for virtual assets that are related to token securities - which is a very niched portion of the digital finance spectrum.

China

---

It wouldn’t be a list about cryptocurrencies bans without mentioning China. The global industry titan and biggest population in the world, at around 1.4 billion, banned the trade and use of cryptocurrencies dating back as early as 2013. However, the local crypto movement and markets were still relatively active as users looked for workarounds to keep using digital currencies.

It is also, the most controversial nation to ban crypto simply due to misinformation propagated by media outlets whenever the country released a statement on the matter. Even though crypto has been banned in China since 2013, regulatory reinforcements on the topic in 2017 and most recently in 2021 caused crypto markets to nosedive in panic - even though nothing was new in their information.

Colombia

---

Heading to Latin America, Colombia is the only country in the South area of the continent where cryptocurrencies are completely banned. In 2014, the Central Bank of the nation determined that financial institutions could not protect, help invest or facilitate cryptocurrency transactions for the local population.

That doesn’t mean, however, that no one there is using crypto. Although financial institutions aren’t allowed to provide crypto services, citizens are free to engage with foreign providers. The regulatory crackdown might actually be about to change, as Colombia’s Central Bank announced last December that it’s considering a pilot program to start implementing crypto services in the nation.

Indonesia

---

The fifth most populated country in the world, Indonesia tops this list by having the most recent cryptocurrency ban - Indonesia’s financial firms authority, known as the OJK, fully banned financial institutions from providing crypto services just last month in January 2022.
Seems like the reasoning often repeats itself across all nations. OJK published a statement on Instagram following the ban, explaining that it prohibited cryptocurrencies due to their volatile nature and the fact that they are not legal tender issued by any country.

Nepal

---

The country with the most interesting flag in the world also has the most strict anti-cryptocurrency policy. Since August of 2017, Nepal prohibits all cryptocurrency transactions, use and service providing. In October of that same year, their anti-money-laundering task force arrested several people who were allegedly providing crypto services inside a residential complex.

Morocco

---

In Morocco, cryptocurrencies have been banned since November of 2017, under the argumentation that digital assets need regulatory oversight and therefore are currently not safe to be used in the nation.

This justification has often been seen by local financial experts and researchers as vague and illogical - if it’s illegal due to the lack of local regulatory oversight, the country can simply provide such governance and create a safe framework for citizens to use and invest.

Regardless, cryptocurrency transactions still seem to be flourishing in the nation. According to a recent report by CoinDesk, local Bitcoin transactions saw a 30% increase in Morocco between 2019 and 2020.



Author: Gate.io Researcher: Victor Bastos
* This article represents only the views of the researcher and does not constitute any investment suggestions.
*Gate.io reserves all rights to this article. Reposting of the article will be permitted provided Gate.io is referenced. In all other cases, legal action will be taken due to copyright infringement.