Ukrainian president returns virtual asset bill to parliament for revision

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky has delayed signing the bill to establish the country’s regulatory framework for digital assets. On Sept. 8, the parliamentary approved the draft law entitled “On virtual assets.” According to a statement by the presidential office on Oct. 5, Zelensky returned the legislation to the parliament along with a few improvements.

According to the statement, the president is opposed to the legislation as it stands. He believes that the high cost of creating a new regulatory body to oversee digital assets is too costly.

The legislation states that regulation of virtual assets markets will be done by different state bodies, depending on their type, and by the creation of a new executive agency. This law will require substantial expenditures from state budgets to create a new body.

Zelensky proposes that instead of creating an executive agency focusing on digital assets, they be placed under the control of the National Commission on Securities and Stock Market. This watchdog agency is, according its charter, “subordinated” to the President of Ukraine and accountable the Verkhovna Rada, the nation’s parliament.

This development seems to be a reflection of the Ukrainian authorities’ pragmatic search in order to implement a digital asset regulation regime as quickly as possible, rather than a reverse of the nation’s forward-looking stance regarding crypto.