- Militant group considers Bitcoin fraudulent
- Herat, which is Afghanistan’s third largest city, was the focus of the crackdown.
Taliban ban Crypto: Central bank of Afghanistan banned cryptocurrencies all over the country, and a senior police official said that the Taliban regime has arrested several dealers who didn’t follow orders to stop trading digital tokens.
Some Afghans used cryptocurrencies to keep their money safe and out of the hands of the Taliban. This is why the government is now cracking down on them. Cryptocurrency has become a popular way to move money in and out of a country that can’t use the global banking system because of sanctions against a militant group.
In the wake of a market crash that wiped out about $2 trillion of wealth and sent several high-profile firms bankrupt, countries from Singapore to the US are tightening their rules on cryptocurrencies. However, outright bans are much less common. China, which made all crypto transactions illegal in September 2021, is now joined by Afghanistan.
“The central bank told us to stop all money changers, individuals, and businesspeople from trading fake digital currencies like Bitcoin,” Sayed Shah Saadaat, head of criminal investigations at the police headquarters in Herat, said by phone.
Saadaat said that 13 people were arrested, but most of them were released on bail. He also said that more than 20 crypto-related businesses have been shut down in Herat, Afghanistan’s third-largest city and a centre for trading in digital tokens. Four of Afghanistan’s six crypto brokerages are in the city, which is about 75 miles (121 km) from the border with Iran.
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See Crypto dilemma for Indonesia’s Muslims for more information on this subject. Ban A Would-Be Crypto Talking Baron Does Business in the Shadow of the Taliban The Taliban have said that online forex trading is not allowed in Afghanistan.
One year after the US left Afghanistan, the Taliban’s rule hurts the country.
In a report from last year, blockchain research firm Chainalysis said that Afghanistan was one of the 20 most crypto-friendly countries in the world. Buying power parity per capita was used to give more weight to poorer countries.
