Columbians Take Legal Actions Against Binance – Panama Looks To Cryptocurrency To Ignite Tech Investment

Legal Actions Against Binance

Welcome back to the Tribe! In this post we dive into the legal actions against Binance from Colombia and take a look at Panama aiming for more crypto innovation!

Nothing should be considered investment or financial advice. Enjoy the ride!

Legal Actions Against Binance

Following an account blockade five months ago over suspected money laundering, some Colombian users have taken legal actions against Binance. In other news, the success of Bitcoin in El Salvador is focusing the attention of another South American country on cryptocurrencies, which the government believes will ignite tech investments in the country.

Binance Account Blockade

Five months ago some Colombian accounts on the Binance exchange were blocked following allegations of money laundering. The allegations came after an investigation by the Fiscal Intelligence and Investigation Service (FIOD), Netherland’s anti-money laundering watchdog revealed that the accounts which held an excess of $1 million were linked to financial crimes.

Legal Action In Colombia

Jairo Velez whose account was one of the blocked accounts said:

“I have been blocked since September 29, 2021. I already have five months without access to my funds. In my wallet they stole what I had and, according to Binance officials, the funds are held by the Dutch FIOD.”

He is one of the users who have already initiated legal actions against the exchange. According to him his attorney also sent a request for the release of his funds to the exchange’s compliance office which has not been answered.

Another user, Andrea Torrente suffered the same fate as Velez. Binance informed her that the funds were held as a result of an investigation by the Dutch authorities, with the support of a Dutch prosecutor.

Torrente has also started to take legal action against the exchange, notifying the local representative of Binance in Colombia without receiving any answer yet.

The lack of response to users by the exchange following the case is quite worrisome. According to Torrente:

“You ask them to give you the freezing order issued by the FIOD and they tell you to write an email from the Dutch police. Almost six months ago we received the same response from Binance. They close our chats. They basically wash their hands.”

Although there is no official figure of the account affected by the blockade, some of the affected users have created a Telegram group to create awareness and coordinate action against the exchange.

Panama Looks To Cryptocurrency

Support in the private sector and banking communities is growing for a measure proposed last year by Gabriel Silva, a 32-year-old Panamanian congressman. In 2021, Silva – an independent – brought forward a private member’s bill named

“Crypto Law: Making Panama compatible with the digital economy, blockchain, cryptoassets, and the internet.”

According to Silva, the bill if adopted would bring “legal, regulatory, and fiscal certainty to the use, holding and issuance of digital value and cryptoassets” in the country.

Furthermore, he claimed that his bill which is slated to be debated in the Panamanian Congress, would boost job creation, attract tech investors and promote job transparency. The bill aims at giving Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies proper legal footing but does not seek to make Bitcoin a legal tender as is the case in El Salvador. It specifies that “all natural and legal persons” can use crypto assets as a legal means of payment in all “civil or commercial” transactions.

Jose Abbo, the head of the Panama Savings Fund and an independent financial advisor claimed that Panama was “lagging behind” other nations “ in terms of the implementation of cryptocurrencies, in their use and in the economy.” he also added that going forward, the country needs to move away from “old sectors” and adopt innovations like cryptocurrencies which would attract tech investments to the country.

Other News – Gemini Electronic Money License

Cryptocurrency exchange and digital asset custodial service provider Gemini has received an e-money license from the Irish Central Bank. The license allows the Winklevoss-led firm to operate a fintech firm in the country and issue electronic money to investors.