Economic sanctions against Iran have been lifted, but some sanctions still apply.A pair of attorneys at the global Pillsbury law firm claim that screening rules still exist when trading with Iran, which means complications for anyone in the U.S.and European Union (EU) doing bitcoin transactions with parties in Iran, according to City A.M., a London, U.K.Attorneys Steven Farmer and Matthew Oresman claim some EU and U.S.financial sanctions remain in place against certain Iranian individuals and businesses.(The lawyers are both sanctions experts and Farmer is also a bitcoin expert.)In such cases, it is necessary to screen parties in Iran when doing transactions with them.The same holds true for doing transactions with other nations under sanctions such as Russia and Syria.If an entity is on an asset freeze list, there is a prohibition on dealing with “economic resources” or funds controlled by that entity.The lawyers said bitcoin complicates due diligence in such situations.“The bitcoin system does not lend itself to traditional screening processes.” They characterized the problem as a regulatory nightmare.

Conducting business with bitcoin belonging to an entity on an asset freeze list breaches sanction laws in lieu of an appropriate license.Buyers and sellers of bitcoin interact with encrypted identities; it is not necessary to transfer personal information when conducting a bitcoin transaction.As a result, it is hard to perform checks on counterparties when trading in bitcoin.Due diligence is needed when doing business with a sanctioned entity to avoid big fines and possible prison terms.Also read: Will latest bans on cash and controls grow bitcoin?The lawyers advise those using bitcoin to know how to protect themselves against risks posed by a decentralized system like bitcoin.One option is to ask counterparties to prove they own the bitcoin ID they use on the network and to provide a track record for that ID.They should also avoid dealing with counterparties that use “stealth addresses” that can hide the identity of bitcoin payer or payee.Recent initiatives to analyze bitcoin transaction traces indicate that it could become easier to identify parties to bitcoin transactions.

Directories of transactions could lessen complications for legal and compliance teams when considering the legality of bitcoin trades.Meanwhile, bitcoin users dealing with sanctioned entities must implement robust processes to verify a counterparty’s identity and to check in advance before trading.bitcoin atlanta conferenceA Swedish investment company is using the cryptocurrency Bitcoin to avoid U.S.bitcoin gh/s wikifinancial sanctions, allowing investors to invest in the economy of one of the world’s foremost sponsors of terrorism.forbes bitcoin 2011Brave New World Investments, established by Mairtin O’Duinnin and Mikael Johansson, allows international investors to put money into the Iranian stock market without requiring a Swedish bank account.bitcoin taxable uk

European sanctions on Iran were removed starting in 2016 as part of the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, otherwise known as the Iran nuclear deal, but Swedish banks do not allow investment in the Iranian economy because of U.S.ethereum hashrate cpufinancial sanctions, according to Johnsson.kurs bitcoin indonesia“We got to think (sic) of the venture as the sanctions against Iran were starting to get dismantled in early 2016,” Johansson told Finance Magnates, a financial news site.litecoin virtual mining“However, due to U.S.most trustworthy bitcoin exchangefinancial sanctions still in effect against Iran, none of the Swedish banks wanted to help us — despite there being no relevant sanctions against Iran in Sweden or the European Union stopping us.” The U.S.bitcoin ios miner

maintained several sanctions against Iran after the nuclear deal due to the country’s continued sponsorship of terror and other aggressive provocations in the Middle East.Johansson explained that his company simply “side-stepped” the Swedish banking system in order to avoid potential sanctions enforcement.The company does not use a Swedish bank account, but said they will have an Iranian one “for the equity investments.” “We pay our bills, shareholder dividends, Iran deposits — everything — in cryptocurrencies,” explained Johansson.Bitcoin is a form of digital currency, or cryptocurrency, which can be used as payment, effectively replacing regular currencies.Bitcoin is completely decentralized and works peer-to-peer, meaning there is no central bank or government administrator.All Bitcoin transactions are recorded in a public ledger called the blockchain.The lack of a central regulator means there is no way to effectively stop Bitcoin transactions.Johansson added that his company is not breaking any Swedish or European Union laws, and that it “religiously” abides by anti-money laundering directives.

While the company’s process may be legal, it may not necessarily be effective.“This effort is doable from a purely transactional point of view, but it’s probably not possible that this would be a practical conduit to increase Swedish or European investment in Iranian companies,” Yaya Fanusie, the director of analysis for Foundation for Defense of Democracies’ Center on Sanctions and Illicit Finance, told The Daily Caller News Foundation.“There’s a lot standing in their way given that only a small, almost fringe segment of investors are comfortable with using bitcoin for investing.” Fanusie explained that the EU is in the midst of trying to find ways to regulate Bitcoin transactions and make it more difficult to transact anonymously, which could hamper Brave New World’s investment strategy.That said, it could be fruitful as Bitcoin continues to grow in popularity.“But if we get to a point where bitcoin is widely adopted and well-integrated into the global financial community, then such models probably will be a more reliable way to get money into places where the U.S.