In the Republic of Belarus complex regulation of the tokene sphere was introduced in 2017 with the adoption of the Decree of the President of the Republic of Belarus № 8 “On the development of the digital economy” (further – Decree). It became one of the first regulations in the world that consolidate comprehensive rules for working with tokens. The norms of the Decree have been tested by practice and remain relevant today: many foreign countries have used the belarusian decree as a basis for creating their own national regulations.
The Decree allows token transactions for individuals and legal entities, and regulates specialized crypto activities within the framework of the Hi-Tech Park (HTP) regime.
PERMITTED OPERATIONS WITH TOKENS
According to the Decree, a token is a record in a distributed information system that certifies the existence of the token holder's rights to civil rights objects and (or) it is a cryptocurrency. In this regard, a token as defined by Belarusian law encompasses both digital assets, which certify specific property rights, and cryptocurrencies, the price of which is determined by the market.
Individuals have the right to own tokens, as well as:
- to gift and bequeath tokens;
- to store tokens in virtual wallets;
- to exchange tokens for other tokens, to buy and sell tokens for Belarusian rubles, foreign currency, electronic money;
- independently carry out mining, without engaging other individuals under labor or civil law contracts.
At the same time, individuals are entitled to buy and sell tokens for money only on the platforms of Belarusian crypto-residents. Foreign platforms can be used only for the exchange of tokens. Taking this into account, a citizen who would like to invest on a foreign platform can buy one of the common cryptocurrencies, such as BTC, ETH, USDT, in Belarus for money and withdraw it to his account on a foreign platform for further trading. To sell the earned cryptocurrency, you should also use the Belarusian marketplace.
Individual entrepreneurs may conduct transactions with tokens only if they have HTP resident status.
Legal entities, including those without HTP resident status, have the right to own tokens, as well as:
- to store tokens in virtual wallets;
- to create and place their own tokens in the Republic of Belarus and abroad through a Belarusian ICO organizer;
- to exchange tokens for other tokens, buy and sell tokens for Belarusian rubles, foreign currency, and elecyronic money on HTP crypto-residents' platforms.
Mining for individual entrepreneurs and legal entities is allowed if they have the HTP resident status for this type of activity.
It is important to note that the legislation prohibits p2p trading (it means making transactions directly, without intermediaries) for all of the above categories of persons, as well as the use of tokens as a means of payment.
SPECIALIZED ACTIVITIES WITH TOKENES
As a follow-up to Decree №8, the Supervisory Board of the HTP approved detailed requirements for crypto activities:
- the activity of a crypto platform operator (crypto exchange);
- the activity of a cryptocurrency exchange operator (crypto exchanger);
- the activity on creation and placement of tokens (ICO organizer);
- other activities, namely: transactions with tokens in the interests of clients (crypto broker), creation and placement of own tokens.
Such HTP residents are subject to higher requirements for the safety of their operations, including having sufficient experience to conduct such business, meeting the requirements for business reputation, having qualified personnel, forming a statutory fund in the established amount, regularly passing legal and technical audits, etc.
CREATION AND PLACEMENT OF TOKENS
HTP resident entrepreneurs and legal entities have the right to attract financing for their activities through the creation and placement of tokens in Belarus and abroad through specialized HTP residents - ICO organizers.
At the moment, it is possible to place so-called “quasi-bonds” or “debt” tokens in Belarus. Such tokens certify the owner's right to:
- to repay the value of the token;
- payment of a yield, which can be determined in a fixed amount, as a percentage of the token value, or based on a special formula (e.g., based on the issuer's financial indicators).
Both token value and yield can be determined in cash, including Belarusian rubles and foreign currency, e-money, and tokens.
This instrument of raising finance is popular among Belarusian companies due to its ease of implementation and lack of onerous requirements (e.g., no collateral is required for issuance).
Investors purchase tokens due to the possibility of obtaining potentially higher yields compared to classical instruments (e.g., deposits and bonds), including in foreign currency, the absence of a high entry threshold for investment, and the application of tax benefits to income from tokens.
PERSPECTIVES OF SEGMENT DEVELOPMENT
Among the global trends of blockchain technologies development one can mention tokenization of real sector assets (RWA), development of central bank digital currencies (CBDC) and smart contracts, decentralized finance (De-Fi), cross-chain technologies.
The Republic of Belarus is actively working on updating the legislation through the development of a new comprehensive normative act to regulate the sphere. The need to update the legislation is related to the active growth of the market over the past few years, which has expanded the token sphere from a legal experiment into a full-fledged segment of the economy
AMONG THE DIRECTIONS FOR IMPROVING REGULATION ONE CAN MENTION
Implementation of solutions for using tokens for foreign trade
One of the most urgent tasks is the use of digital assets to overcome payment barriers. It is expected that business entities will be offered solutions for the use of tokens while fulfilling obligations under foreign trade agreements.
Launch of the digital Belarusian ruble
Currently, more than 110 countries are developing or implementing their official digital currencies. Such work is being actively carried out in Belarus: the launch of the digital Belarusian ruble on the blockchain of the National Bank of the Republic of Belarus is planned for the second half of 2026. By that time, the digital Belarusian ruble will be available for business entities, and by 2027 - for citizens and government agencies.
The introduction of the digital Belarusian ruble will make it possible to speed up and optimize banking operations, increase the safety of funds, and create niches for the development of innovative financial products and smart contracts.
Expanding opportunities for tokenization
Belarus has developed a vast practice of issuing tokens to attract financing by companies from various segments (leasing, manufacturing, construction, retail and wholesale trade, etc.). At the same time, the demand for new tokenization models continues to grow.
As an immediate step to expand tokenization opportunities, banks are expected to be granted access to create and place their tokens on the platforms of ICO organizers. This step will allow to offer the market new financial products, including De-Fi, and expand the use of smart contracts in contractual relationships
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