Pro-crypto Colombian congressman highlights legalization challenges

Mauricio Toro, Colombian congressman of the Alianza Verde party, has authored a draft bill meant to regulate the crypto industry within his country. During a recent interview with Confidential Colombia, Toro outlined some of the hurdles his proposed legislation may face.

Toro, who believes Colombia is lagging behind other nations in terms of crypto regulation, said that one of the main challenges is to make certain that the crypto industry is compliant with AML procedures. His hope is that this will bypass negative perceptions of the technology as it relates to crypto-crime.

The congressman additionally clarified that “any scenario in Colombia can be used to launder money,” not only crypto:

"What we have to guarantee is that it is not done with crypto assets or cryptocurrencies and for this, special requirements are created for those who want to establish as an exchange, where they will have to report the number of transactions per month, pay tax for the commissions, and disclosing who are the owners and their clients."

Toro once again highlighted the "irony" that Colombia is one of the most active countries in terms of crypto transaction volume in Latin America, yet has no clear mandate with regard to regulating digital assets.

The debate around his bill’s approval has been delayed by bureaucratic issues, however, and is currently waiting for a clear stance towards crypto from Colombia’s Financial Superintendence.

This isn't the first time the countr has made crypto headlines in recent weeks. On Sept 22, the government of Colombia approved a pilot program that called for companies to test crypto transactions within its regulatory sandbox.