Business / Companies
High Court lifts RBZ crypto-currency trading ban
24 May 2018 at 17:48hrs | Views
The High Court has reversed the ban on crypto-currency trading by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe after a local virtual currency exchange house challenged the decision.
Golix made an urgent court application for the RBZ ban to be lifted and a default judgment was passed after the central bank failed to turn up to defend.
The crypto-currency exchange was represented by Fadzai Mahere and Hopewell Chitima.
RBZ issued a directive last week ordering financial institutions to stop facilitating crypto-currency trading.
Crypto-currency trading, the central bank suggested, can be used to facilitate tax evasion as well as externalisation of funds in violation of a country's laws.
Central bank's registrar of banks Norman Mataruke said the institution "has an obligation to safeguard the integrity of payment systems."
Besides stopping banks from doing business with crypto-currencies, Mataruke also order the exchanges to shut down operations.
"All crypto-currency exchange houses operating in the country . . . are required to cease all virtual currency exchange operations," he wrote to Golix on May 15.
The ban on crypto-currency trading affected the plans to launch and ICO by Golix which sought to raise $32 million through a token sale.
Through the token sale, Golix intend to expand to other African countries and ‘enable more people in Africa to access cryptocurrencies.'
The behavior by the central bank ignited a legal battle in which Golix sought he courts to set aside the directive.
Golix made an urgent court application for the RBZ ban to be lifted and a default judgment was passed after the central bank failed to turn up to defend.
The crypto-currency exchange was represented by Fadzai Mahere and Hopewell Chitima.
RBZ issued a directive last week ordering financial institutions to stop facilitating crypto-currency trading.
Crypto-currency trading, the central bank suggested, can be used to facilitate tax evasion as well as externalisation of funds in violation of a country's laws.
Central bank's registrar of banks Norman Mataruke said the institution "has an obligation to safeguard the integrity of payment systems."
Besides stopping banks from doing business with crypto-currencies, Mataruke also order the exchanges to shut down operations.
"All crypto-currency exchange houses operating in the country . . . are required to cease all virtual currency exchange operations," he wrote to Golix on May 15.
The ban on crypto-currency trading affected the plans to launch and ICO by Golix which sought to raise $32 million through a token sale.
Through the token sale, Golix intend to expand to other African countries and ‘enable more people in Africa to access cryptocurrencies.'
The behavior by the central bank ignited a legal battle in which Golix sought he courts to set aside the directive.
Source - Byo24News
