Slashdot Mirror
Russian Bitcoin Issuers Will Risk 7 Years In Prison (thestack.com)
An anonymous reader writes: The Russian Ministry of Finance has announced an amendment to the country's criminal code which will impose prison sentences of up to seven years for the issuing of Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies. A government source speaking to Interfax (Russian) said that the maximum prison sentence for individuals found issuing cryptocurrencies would be 2-4 years, and/or up to three years' worth of salary or income, whilst managers of dispensing institutions could face seven years in prison, up to four years of income equivalent in fines, and a lifetime ban from similar posts. Russia announced the ban on Bitcoin or other 'money surrogates' in February of 2014, asserting that cryptocurrencies facilitate money-laundering and other criminal activity.
Also in Japan, Switzerland, Sweden, and Denmark. Also, the ECB. And probably coming soon to a country very near you.
It looks like they are basically making it illegal to sell bitcoin for money within Russia. I can't imagine any legitimate businesses will accept the hassle, but hackers will likely still be able to exchange bitcoin for money overseas. Personally, I think the large delays in accepting bitcoin transfers is probably more harmful to its value as a currency, and this would likely not help any. If I held any bitcoin, I would sell them now before they reach firesale value.
How do I take the money from my drug enterprise into bitcoin without any tracing back to me?
Is there a bank where I can walk up with $10 million and ask to convert it into bitcoin without the bank requiring ID?
APK likes to ask for responses to the same things over and over. Maybe he just likes the responses?
You're a fad libertarian if you didn't know governments frequently ban things like carrying large amounts of money, traveling with large amounts of money, or making large bank account deposits and withdrawals without disclosure to the authorities. In Alabama, a routine traffic stop will end in the police confiscating your drug money if they notice you have more than $100 in cash. No drug charges, just "that's a lot of cash to be carrying. Don't you use credit cards, boy? That must be for drugs. Now we can't arrest you for drugs, but we can take your money on suspicion of involvement in illegal activities."
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