Ottawa’s Emergencies Act cracks down on convoy crypto. Experts warn that’s not easy
The federal government’s move to invoke the Emergencies Act marks an attempt to cut off funds directed to the “Freedom Convoy,” including new cryptocurrency channels.
But experts say fundraising through the decentralized digital assets can be difficult to pin down and worry that attempts to crack down on crypto could have long-lasting ramifications on fintech innovation.
Convoyers, who have set up camp for 20 days in Ottawa and established satellite protests at border crossings across Canada, have turned to cryptocurrency after crowdfunding platforms such as GoFundMe shut off their access to funds after the demonstrations were deemed “illegal” by government and police. Read more: What powers will the Emergencies Act give the government?
Here’s what the convoy can expect Benjamin Dichter, one of the principal organizers of the so-called “Freedom Convoy,” said in a Facebook livestream last week that as GoFundMe began to withhold funds from their cause, he floated the idea on Twitter of using Bitcoin “as an alternative,” citing its decentralized nature as fitting for the convoy’s anti-mandate ethos.
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