Ireland to ban political crypto donations

This decision was made due to concerns about foreign interference in elections

19.04.2022 - 12:05

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What’s new? Political parties in Ireland will be banned from accepting crypto donations due to concerns about foreign interference in elections. Ireland’s Local Government and Housing Minister Darragh O’Brien said that the new laws will help protect the country’s democratic system and the Electoral Commission will monitor their compliance, Independent reports. It is currently unknown what percentage of political donations are paid to parties or individuals using cryptocurrencies.

Information on the Independent website

What has O’Brien already done? He launched his campaign to reform the law in January 2022, setting up a task force of political scientists and lawyers to study new election laws. The task force has developed a series of measures that will create a “legal and digital bulwark” against election interference in the country. It includes the submission by parties of streamlined accountancy reporting and declarations on compliance with the new political funding laws.

What had happened before? In February, the Central Bank of Ireland said that it is unlikely to approve investment funds with cryptocurrencies for retail investors. The regulator noted that digital currencies carry a high level of risk that can harm investors.

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