Belarus has officially stepped into the regulated crypto banking arena. President Alexander Lukashenko signed Decree No. 19, titled “On Crypto Banks and Certain Issues of Control in the Sphere of Digital Tokens,” on January 16. The move aims to cement the nation's status as a financial tech hub and establish clear rules for crypto banking operations. It’s a bold move from a nation known more for its potatoes than its private keys.
The decree formally defines a crypto bank as a joint-stock company authorized to blend digital token operations with traditional banking, payment, and related financial services. These entities will be able to offer hybrid products that mix blockchain-based instruments with conventional financial operations. To qualify, a crypto bank must hold resident status within Belarus’s High-Tech Park (HTP) and be included in a dedicated registry maintained by the National Bank of Belarus. Essentially, they want you to do your KYC, but on a blockchain.
Crypto banks will operate under a dual regulatory structure. They must comply with legislation applicable to non-bank credit and financial institutions, as well as decisions issued by the Supervisory Board of the High-Tech Park. Authorities state this layered approach ensures innovation is matched with appropriate oversight, maintaining standards comparable to traditional financial institutions. It’s a classic case of "trust us, we're regulated," but for the crypto space.
Under the new rules, crypto banks may facilitate digital asset operations while providing access to banking and payment services, positioning them as intermediaries between traditional finance and the digital asset economy. The decree aligns with Belarus’s long-standing ambition to lead in financial technology, building on the favorable legal and tax regimes offered by the HTP. It’s a high-stakes game of financial hopscotch, stepping carefully between the old world and the new.
This development follows President Lukashenko’s November directive to expand crypto mining infrastructure using the country's nuclear power capacity, framing it as a strategic pathway toward reducing global dollar dependency. He dismissed concerns about market volatility, calling crypto an inevitable component of international efforts to establish monetary alternatives. When your power grid is powered by atoms, the volatility of a meme coin probably doesn't seem so scary.
