Kevin Helms
A student of Austrian economics, Kevin found Bitcoin in 2011 and has been an evangelist ever since. His interests lie in Bitcoin security, open source systems, network effects and the intersection of finance and cryptography.
Egypt’s Central Bank Issues Crypto Warning – Violators Face Jail – Regulation Bitcoin News
The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) has issued a new warning about cryptocurrency, noting that violators could face prison terms. The Egyptian Central Bank law “prohibits the issuance, trading or promotion of cryptocurrencies, the creation or operation of platforms for trading them, or the performance of related activities.”
Crypto warning issued by the Central Bank of Egypt
The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) has renewed its warning on all types of cryptocurrencies, citing a number of risks, including high volatility, use in financial crime and e-piracy, the Egypt Independent reported on Tuesday. The ECB also stressed that crypto is not issued or backed by the central bank or any other official authority.
“In the same context, the Law of the Central Bank of Egypt and the Banking System – promulgated by Law No. 194 of 2020 – prohibits the issuance, trading or promotion of cryptocurrencies, the creation or operation of platforms for trading them, or the performance of related activities,” it said in The CBE statement and adds:
Whoever violates this shall be imprisoned and fined not less than one million pounds and not more than LE10 million [$516,340]or one of these two penalties.
The Egyptian Central Bank issued a similar warning about cryptocurrencies in January 2018, specifically naming bitcoin, saying:
It is worth noting that cryptocurrencies are not issued by any central bank, or any official central issuing authority that can be held accountable.
“Furthermore, cryptocurrencies are not backed by any tangible assets and are not monitored by any regulators worldwide, and consequently they lack the official government guarantee and support enjoyed by the other official currencies issued by central banks,” the central bank added.
Egypt’s Dar El-Ifta, the government’s main Islamic institution for issuing fatwas (religious opinions), issued an edict in January 2018, declaring that any and all use of cryptocurrency was ḥarām, or forbidden – including buying, selling and leasing.
What do you think about the crypto warning from the Central Bank of Egypt? Let us know in the comments section below.
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