Bitcoin Illegal in Nepal?

[hugeblack]

Police have arrested several people on charges of trading cryptocurrency against the rules of the country's central bank.

This time three people were arrested. The police said:

The arrested have been identified as Rajan Bhattarai, 21, of Parbat, Bishal Shrestha, 25, of Sunsari and Dipen Raj Shrestha, 27, of Kathmandu.

Acting on a tip-off, a special team deployed from Metropolitan Crime Division nabbed them from Minbhawan, Kathmandu, on Thursday.

Police said that Bhattarai has so far carried out 1,926 transactions of crypto-coins, including Bitcoin, with 975 people resulting in a turnover of Rs 2.6 million. Likewise, the other two were also involved in crypto trading.

police have urged all and sundry not to engage in crypto trading as it is illegal in the country.

Source --> https://english.khabarhub.com/2022/21/233602/



This is not the first time that I have read about people being arrested in Nepal for using Bitcoin. In 2017:

On October 6, 2017, a task-force from the CIB arrested seven suspects allegedly involved with running “bitcoin exchange” operations. The CIB explains that the operators violated the order of the National Bank of Nepal that stated until regulations are conceived bitcoin, and other cryptocurrency exchange businesses are “illegal.”

Source ---> https://news.bitcoin.com/bitcoin-illegal-in-nepal-police-arrest-seven-individuals-for-trading-operations/


I don't know what the penalty period they will be sent to, but it seems that Nepal seriously considers cryptocurrency trading illegal.

[Lucius]

If you are doing something illegal (according to the laws of the country where you live), then you cannot even expect a different outcome from what just happened to these Nepalese. Their age shows that they are young and inexperienced people, and they probably came under the radar because they did not try to hide from the authorities at all, and it is not difficult to connect points that include only the bank and crypto exchange.

If people in Nepal want to trade crypto, then unfortunately they have to be smarter than the authorities - which means looking for ways that do not involve domestic banks and KYC on crypto exchanges.

[Findingnemo]

Crypto Trading, Mining Are Illegal and Punishable, Nepal Central Bank Warns as the title says their central bank banned the crypto transactions but how they can punish the people apart from freezing their bank accounts unless the government is actually banned the bitcoin trading and mining.

I don't know the government is also announced that they banned bitcoin and all other cryptos but in some countries banks are taking charge than government.

[YOSHIE]

The Nepalese government should not enforce the law as reported to the crypto users and not make the law illegal to Bitcoin users in general.

What the Nepalese government is doing is very contrary to its neighbors, India, Bangladesh, Nepal should take a good example for crypto users in neighboring countries, although there are pros and cons.

As far as I know Nepal's economy and the biggest income from tourism, manufacturing, By accepting Bitcoin legally in Nepal it is possible to supplement good economic income in Nepal, honestly this is bad news for Bitcoin users in Nepal as a whole.

[SFR10]

Police said that Bhattarai has so far carried out 1,926 transactions of crypto-coins, including Bitcoin, with 975 people resulting in a turnover of Rs 2.6 million. Likewise, the other two were also involved in crypto trading.

~Snipped~
I don't know what the penalty period they will be sent to, but it seems that Nepal seriously considers cryptocurrency trading illegal.

I wouldn't be surprised if they'd be slapped with a higher jail time in comparison to what was given in the previous case from 2017 ^{[3 years]} but for some reason, "this screenshot" is showing different stats for Bhattarai ^{[I don't have a Facebook account to check if something had been lost in translation or that's actually the content of that post]}:

• Rajan Bhattari, among the arrested persons, has done business with 5 people for 10 times till now, from Mangsir to Push about Rs. 2075,000,2019.

and they probably came under the radar because they did not try to hide from the authorities at all, and it is not difficult to connect points that include only the bank and crypto exchange.

If people in Nepal want to trade crypto, then unfortunately they have to be smarter than the authorities - which means looking for ways that do not involve domestic banks and KYC on crypto exchanges.

These are all valid points, but I found a user on LocalBitcoins ^[gensays] who has not faced any issue ^{[so far]} while doing those things in the past few years ^{[a bit strange (it seems like a trap to me)]}.

[avikz]

If a certain activity is illegal in a country, then offenders will be prosecuted. That's normal! If someday my government comes up with a law where they notify crypto trading as an illegal activity, then I will have to stop it immediately and sell off all my bitcoins within the exit period. Otherwise I will also be risking arrest because I will be committing a crime if I continue with it.

So it's not a news that Nepal police has arrested some individuals for a crime. The news here is that, Nepal is ignoring an important technology which is probably going to be the future of money. In that case, Nepal will not be able to benefit from it and will stay cut-off from the world. So it's a pathetic rule that Nepal Central Bank has imposed. Whoch might block the development of the country for decades and even centuries.

[eaLiTy]

Police have arrested several people on charges of trading cryptocurrency against the rules of the country's central bank.

This time three people were arrested. The police said:

The basic thing i do not understand is that how the authorities are getting these tip offs, either the traders are vocal about their activity which is illegal in their country and boast about their profits to their friends and relatives, if not there is no way the authorities are going to pin the activities to them. The other option is P2P trading which is really risky if you are from a country that prohibits cryptocurrency trading.

[Lucius]

These are all valid points, but I found a user on LocalBitcoins ^[gensays] who has not faced any issue ^{[so far]} while doing those things in the past few years ^{[a bit strange (it seems like a trap to me)]}.

I wonder if the man is under the radar all this time because the authorities have failed to prove that he trades in cryptocurrencies, or is it, as you say, a government trap? This user also uses a bank in Qatar, perhaps most transactions go through that bank - and the trading volume through the bank in Nepal is relatively low and does not activate the red flag.

[Gozie51]

Police have arrested several people on charges of trading cryptocurrency against the rules of the country's central bank.

This time three people were arrested. The police said:

The basic thing i do not understand is that how the authorities are getting these tip offs, either the traders are vocal about their activity which is illegal in their country and boast about their profits to their friends and relatives, if not there is no way the authorities are going to pin the activities to them. The other option is P2P trading which is really risky if you are from a country that prohibits cryptocurrency trading.

It is really risky in a country where the government say they have ban it and also declared it as illegal. You can only be careful and police are on the look out to search your phones even if there is no spy on you. In Nigeria also is same thing, the police can stop someone they suspect. This is a big challenge for bitcoin traders too but they are all keeping it low and not exposing too much. Of course if you living a flamboyant life, that will attract eyes on you.

[KingsDen]

If you are doing something illegal (according to the laws of the country where you live), then you cannot even expect a different outcome from what just happened to these Nepalese. Their age shows that they are young and inexperienced people, and they probably came under the radar because they did not try to hide from the authorities at all, and it is not difficult to connect points that include only the bank and crypto exchange.

Were they arrested on the charges of underage or because they defaulted the law?

If people in Nepal want to trade crypto, then unfortunately they have to be smarter than the authorities - which means looking for ways that do not involve domestic banks and KYC on crypto exchanges.

They need to be smart about it. In as much as there's internet, there's always a way to bypass or outsmart the government

[zasad@]

They need to be smart about it. In as much as there's internet, there's always a way to bypass or outsmart the government

Unfortunately, the article does not contain detailed information about the details of the violation. If they were trading on a crypto exchange, the police would hardly know about it. Most likely these were P2P exchanges and personal meetings, and this is very dangerous, because such business can usually be done when there are good connections with the police.

[avikz]

The law of the land is decided by the governing country. So if Nepal has decided to criminalise crypto usage, it is illegal. So people who are trying to look away from the law and continue with the activity, would eventually be arrested by the law enforcement agencies.

Nepal was a monarchy until 2008. So they are expected to have strict rules on such cases. Unfortunate, but little we can do here.

[bittraffic]

There are still a few countries that made crypto illegal even at this age. You can already tell how many people are going to be left behind in this technology while the rest of the world is moving on. I'd be surprised if they have CBDC yet skipped crypto. No chance of getting freedom in those countries.

Someone should protest for this and put a Bitcoin Flag up there on Mt Everest.

[blckhawk]

The law of the land is decided by the governing country. So if Nepal has decided to criminalise crypto usage, it is illegal. So people who are trying to look away from the law and continue with the activity, would eventually be arrested by the law enforcement agencies.

Nepal was a monarchy until 2008. So they are expected to have strict rules on such cases. Unfortunate, but little we can do here.

We don't have to do anything anyway, Nepal isn't really considered as a population center so I'm not keen on what needs to be done with Nepal and as you've said, they need to be as strict as they can be, it's not like this criminalization of cryptocurrency trading is going to be a forever thing, in the next 5 or so years, I'm sure that changes will eventually happen, maybe 5 years is a little too early but I'm telling y'all, the potential money that you can get out of legalizing bitcoin is just far too tempting to avert your eyes away from it.

[Fiatless]

As of my last update in January, Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies were not explicitly illegal in Nepal. However, the Nepalese government has not provided clear regulations regarding their use or legality. Due to this lack of clarity, the use of Bitcoin remains in a legal gray area. While individuals in Nepal may buy, sell, or hold Bitcoin, they do so at their own risk, as there's no legal framework to protect cryptocurrency users. It's important for individuals in Nepal to stay informed about any updates or changes in cryptocurrency regulations that may occur. Despite the uncertainty, Bitcoin continues to be traded and used by some individuals and businesses within the country.

 As with any investment or financial activity, individuals should exercise caution and conduct thorough research before engaging in cryptocurrency transactions in Nepal.

It would have been proper if you added the source of your information because dealing with or using cryptocurrencies is still banned in Nepal. I just checked a few websites and I don't see any news that affirmed that the ban has been lifted. In fact, the Nepal Rastra Bank has periodically published directives that cryptocurrencies are illegal. The telecommunication regulatory body in Nepal has even instructed all internet service providers to block access to crypto-related websites, apps and online networks.

https://www.recentfusion.com/2023/08/07/why-bitcoin-is-illegal-in-nepal/

[atookz]

Since several years ago, Nepal's central bank has stated that the country does not allow any form of transaction or investment with cryptocurrencies. The legal basis used is quite similar to other countries which initially declared cryptocurrencies illegal, namely the Nepal Rastra Bank Act, which does not allow currencies other than the Nepalese Rupee to be used as a transaction tool. However, as reported in the Forkast.news media in September 2023, the Nepalese government is actually considering revising these regulations to accommodate transactions with virtual currency. Currently, the virtual currency that wants to be legalized is only the virtual form of the Nepalese Rupee, but this does not rule out the possibility that with the revision of these regulations, cryptocurrency can also circulate legally in the country. I think this is very common when countries initially reject cryptocurrencies but in the end they slowly accept to use cryptocurrencies.

[pakhitheboss]

Here is a list of countries from the Indian Ocean regions where Bitcoin and crypto trading are considered illegal and can get you to a death sentence.
[1] Bangladesh
[2] Nepal
[3] Pakistan
[4] Srilanka
If you do research on Google then with the keyword," enter the country name is Bitcoin or crypto trading is banned". You will find a lot of articles related to it. While these countries have banned crypto their justice and cyber policing systems lack the infrastructure to catch those who are dealing with cryptocurrencies. For me Nepal might have passed a law but they cannot implement it due to lack of resources.