Canada Bans Cryptocurrency Donations to Political Parties to Ensure Election Transparency

Ottawa: At a time when the craze for cryptocurrencies is increasing worldwide, Canada has red-flagged digital assets like Bitcoin to clean up its electoral process. Following in the footsteps of Britain, Bill C-25 (Stronger and Free Elections Act) introduced in the Parliament of Canada will close the way for political parties to accept crypto donations. The biggest drawback of cryptocurrencies is the secrecy of their transactions, which can be used by foreign agencies or unknown sources to influence elections. From now on, no political party or candidate in Canada will be able to raise funds through digital wallets, which will curb the entry of corruption and black money. Interestingly, crypto donations were allowed in Canada from 2019 with certain conditions. The rule at that time was to reveal the identity of the donor of more than $200 and convert it into Canadian dollars. However, with the increasing prevalence of technology, election officials realized that blockchain technology, rather than the original donor's traceability, was theoretically impossible to improve the transparency of the entire system.