Latam Insights highlights the arrest of the founders of a $400 million cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme in Argentina, the Brazilian Central Bank's focus on cryptocurrency regulation, and a proposed crypto tax exemption in Argentina.
Welcome to Latam Insights, a roundup of the most relevant crypto and economic news in Latin America over the past week.
Founder of $400 Million Cryptocurrency Ponzi Scheme Arrested in Argentina
Argentina's Federal Police reported arresting two people, a woman and a man, the founders of a Ponzi scheme that moved more than $400 million worth of crypto in Brazil. This operation succeeded in tracking the location of these two people after entering the country under false names.
In this edition: Founder of $400 million cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme arrested in Argentina, Brazil's Central Bank makes cryptocurrency regulation a priority, and Argentina's Fintech Chamber proposes a crypto tax exemption in Argentina.
The man, known as "Joao Felipe Costa" in Argentina, was identified by local media as Antonio Inacio Da Silva Neto, co-founder of Braiscompany, a company that aims to "build financial freedom for thousands of people through information." The woman was identified as Fabricia Farias Campos, Da Silva's partner. The arrest was preceded by an intensive investigation, which discovered the location of the couple tracking various purchases and payments made under their fake names in Argentina.
Brazil Sets Cryptocurrency Regulation a Priority
The pair are now in the custody of Argentine authorities, who must sign an extradition order to send them to Brazil, where they will be jailed. Brazil's Central Bank has designated tokenization and regulation of virtual asset service providers (VASP) as a priority for its regulatory directorate this year.
In a list, the agency includes these two things in the topic of innovation, along with artificial intelligence (AI), BaaS (Banking-as-a-service), and the concept of Open Finance, which is related to integrating data throughout the banking system .
Argentinian Fintech Chamber Proposes Crypto Regulations Featuring Tax Exemptions
The Argentine Fintech Chamber, a membership organization of more than 200 companies in the country, has created a cryptocurrency regulation proposal that establishes tax exemptions for cryptocurrency assets to encourage industry growth.
Ignacio Plaza, president of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin), stated:
We want to foster an environment conducive to innovation, economic development and financial inclusion, where regulations and tax treatment provide incentives that encourage investment and growth in the industry.
The proposal, which aims to achieve parity between the tax obligations of crypto and other financial assets, makes cryptocurrency assets held on national exchanges exempt from paying capital gains taxes and other obligations.
According to previous reports, Argentina is close to issuing cryptocurrency exchange regulations via executive order, due to an upcoming evaluation from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) group.
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