The Brazilian Senate will vote on a bill that would make Brazil the latest Latin American country to regulate cryptocurrency. The legislation notes that it specifies guidelines for the provision of virtual asset services.
The Senate’s Economic Affairs Committee unanimously voted in support of the crypto bill on February 22nd, 2022, potentially enhancing the bill’s chances of passing a vote on the Senate floor. It will be referred to President Jair Bolsonaro to be signed into law once it has passed both the Senate and the lower house.
If the bill is passed, Brazil will become the largest Latin American country to regulate cryptocurrencies, lowering the risk of money laundering and increasing investor protection. Some of the region’s smaller countries are ahead of the curve, with Cuba creating legislation that recognizes and organizes their use, and El Salvador declared Bitcoin legal tender alongside the US dollar.
What is Brazil’s intention with this bill?
Well, the bill is more inclined towards targeting criminal activities and keeping tabs on illegal transactions.
The bill, which has been in the works for almost three years, outlines several parts of what comprises a virtual asset (VA), a broker or exchange, and which federal agencies would have jurisdiction over the topic.
According to Brazilian Senator and rapporteur for the bill, Irajá Abreu, the bill will deter numerous financial crimes involving cryptocurrency. He stated;
“The intention of the project is to curb or restrict illegal practices, such as money laundering, tax evasion and many other crimes. There is a market that is licit, legal, which is the vast majority of this market, but there are exceptions.”
Virtual asset service providers must prevent money laundering and asset concealment while battling criminal organizations, terrorism financing, and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, according to the bill. Violations of the text are punishable by jail and penalties.
Brazil’s lower house passed a measure containing restrictions enabling trading virtual currencies in the country towards the end of 2021. The Senate took up the text and decided to vote on Abreu’s proposal. One bill can be connected to the other after it reaches the Senate floor.
Will the bill make crypto more popular?
According to Abreu, yes it will. He stated that:
“With regulation, cryptocurrency will become even more popular….Once this regulation is approved, the trend is that it will be increasingly adopted in the supermarket, in commerce, in a car dealership.”
According to Abreu, the law passed yesterday, which is more focused on investments than on common use, offers a good atmosphere for the more widespread use of cryptocurrencies.
Brazil is the latest country to join a long list of others who have opened up to cryptocurrencies. Although we might be in a crypto winter, there are plenty of favorable signs for mass crypto adoption.