- Kazakhstan court sentenced crypto trader for illegal crypto activity
- The convict received 5 years in prison, with 10 years of crypto activities restriction and $4.19 million confiscation
- Kazakhstan continues its fight against illegal crypto activity, becoming less and less loyal
A court in Kazakhstan convicted a defendant accused of illegal cryptocurrency activity and sentenced him to 5 years in prison, as well as confiscation of assets worth $4.19 million.
Kazakhstan Crypto Crackdown Case Details
Reports from Kazakhstan’s supreme court do not identify the crypto trader but do provide details of the case.
The investigation revealed illegal mining and trading of Bitcoin (BTC), Litecoin (LTC), and Ethereum (ETH) on foreign crypto platforms, as well as the use of Nixmoney, Qiwi, Perfect Money, and Payeer to cash out and purchase real estate and rentals for money laundering.
According to the court, this was a series of gross breaches of the law, and the decision showed its toughening up regarding illegal trading and money laundering, with the prosecution originally asking for six and a half years.
The convict received a five-year prison sentence with forfeiture of $4.19 million in assets and fiat funds, as well as a restriction on mining for the next 10 years.
Kazakhstan’s Attitude Towards the Crypto Sector
Kazakhstan has previously demonstrated a more liberal policy on how crypto trading and mining should be regulated. However, after the shutdowns and the negative reaction to mining in 2022, regulatory measures began to increasingly tighten, creating a not-so-favorable environment for the crypto sector in the country.
All this leads to cases like this, where quite common crypto activity in other countries and the actual use of crypto for illegal earning and money laundering become one in line from a legal point of view.
Conclusion
All details of the case have not yet been disclosed, making it impossible to give a full assessment at this time.
However, it remains a very illustrative case and expresses a clear trend towards stricter measures regarding crypto.
