Mahi Sall, Advisor, Fintech-Bank Partnerships, Payments and Financial Inclusivity
January 25th, 2023
Mahi Sall is the CEO & Founder of FinXpair, a Berlin-based strategic advisory boutique firm focu[...]
PM Trudeau Invokes Emergencies Act Catching Protester Firms including Crypto in Crossfire
PYMNTS | Feb 15, 2022
Cryptocurrency transactions became a surprising casualty of Canada’s Emergencies Act, invoked for the first time in Canada’s history by the country’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in response to the Freedom Convoy truckers protesting vaccine mandates in order to cross borders.
Trudeau expanded the anti-money laundering section of the 1988 act to include payment services linked to cryptocurrency transactions and crowdfunding organizations such as GoFundMe in an effort to cut off funding to the protesters and reopen critical trade borders. Under the act, crowdfunding platforms and payment services providers linked to crypto must register with the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada.
It's not known how the emergency act could impact cryptocurrency payment providers after the situation is contained. The act also empowers financial institutions in the country to freeze or suspend both personal and business accounts suspected to be linked in any way to the protestors.
See: Freedom Convoy Continues, Fundraiser Raises $542K in Bitcoin
Funding to the protestors has become a hot potato, with GOP lawmakers in Washington supporting the truckers and calling for an investigation into GoFundMe’s decision on Feb. 4 to pull a donation page supporting the Freedom Convoy, PYMNTS reported. The page was withdrawn before Canada’s Emergency Act was invoked on Monday (Feb. 14).
Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD), one of Canada's biggest and oldest financial institutions, on Saturday (Feb. 12) froze two personal bank accounts totaling $1.4 million CAD ($1 million). The funds were allegedly going to be used to support the protesters.
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