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1,396,828 voters took part in the referendum - this is 59% of the electorate. Of these, 1,014,304 (73.9%) voted for the change to allow dual citizenship, but this was not enough. The total number of citizens included in the voter list this year was 2,385,234. To make a positive decision, half of the total number of citizens had to vote “for”, and this is 1,192,617 people. This is the second time Lithuania has tried to adopt an amendment to Article 12 of the constitution and allow dual citizenship. In 2019, 1.24 million votes were needed, but 956,564 people voted...

All cryptocurrency mining farms will be disconnected from the national electrical grid. In this way the country will try to control demand. In the north of the country, 2,000 mining devices were seized as part of anti-corruption measures. The National Cryptocurrency Association of Venezuela has confirmed a complete ban on the mining of digital assets in the country. Venezuela has been experiencing an electricity crisis since...

The Ministry of Finance of the Czech Republic has published an updated Financial Bulletin, which contains information about jurisdictions that do not comply with the rules of tax interaction. Source:https://www.mfcr.cz/cs/dane-a-ucetnictvi/financni-zpravodaj/2024/financni-zpravodaj-cislo-3-2024-55060 This step should strengthen the fight against tax evasion. Countries included in the list may be subject to enhanced requirements and stricter monitoring, as well as higher tax rates for transactions. The list is updated twice a year. This time it included Panama, Trinidad and Tobago, Antigua and Barbuda, Fiji, Russia, Guam, Anguilla, Palau, American Samoa, Samoa, the US Virgin Islands and Vanuatu. Also excluded from the list were Belize, Seychelles, Turks and Caicos, and the...

The international publication Global Finance, which specializes in finance and the banking sector, has published a ranking of the best banks in the world. The bank competed among 23 Western European countries. The ranking takes into account various factors. For example, asset growth, innovation, international presence, profitability. In addition, various specialists and consultants working in this field gave their subjective assessment. The Spanish CaixaBank was recognized as the best bank in Western Europe. Bank of Cyprus was awarded as the best bank and best investment bank on the island. The bank demonstrated strong performance and made a profit of €487 million in...

One of the main changes was changes in reporting. From now on, only reports sent by email will be accepted. It is also required to provide reporting on blocked property that is unblocked or transferred within 10 business days from the date of unblocking or transfer of property. Transactions that must be reported include those involving securities, checks, foreign exchange, and the sale or purchase of goods or services. If the information required by OFAC is not available at the time the transaction is rejected, providing that information is not...

The NBU adopted Resolution No. 56, which cancels some currency restrictions introduced in connection with martial law. Thus, currency restrictions on transfers for operations on the import of works and services have been abolished. It is also allowed to transfer funds abroad to repay loans received from non-residents until June 20, 2023, which, according to the terms of the loan agreement, are payable in the period from February 24, 2022. In addition, restrictions on repaying loans received from non-residents after June 20, 2023 have been eased. Namely: it is allowed to buy foreign currency to pay interest on "new" loans, and the minimum term of using a "new" loan, after which it is allowed to buy foreign currency to repay such a loan, is reduced from three to one year. It is also possible to repatriate dividends for corporate rights or shares abroad. Transfers by representative offices of international card payment systems and foreign airlines are allowed. It is allowed to buy foreign currency and transfer funds abroad to pay airport and port fees, fines and membership...

Canadian authorities have fined the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange 6.6 million Canadian dollars (4.4 million US dollars) for violating money laundering and terrorist financing laws. According to an analysis by the Financial Transactions and Reporting Center of Canada, Binance failed to report thousands of large virtual currency deals worth more than 10,000 Canadian dollars (~$7,310) per transaction thousands of times. In addition, the company was not registered as a foreign enterprise in the country. Also, Binance founder Changpeng Zhao was recently sentenced to 4 months in prison after pleading guilty to violating anti-money laundering...

The Estonian bank considers the decision to impose a fine of 300,000 euros unfair. This decision was made by the Estonian Financial Intelligence Unit after conducting an investigation into 3 episodes with settlements in 2022 and 2023. In two cases, the bank failed to implement strict due diligence measures, and in the third, it late notified a transaction that violated financial sanctions. The financial intelligence team is confident that these incidents were caused by bank negligence. Representatives of the bank, in turn, assure that they take compliance with the requirements during the audit very seriously and do not agree with the...

The Verkhovna Rada adopted an amendment to draft law No. 10168-2 regarding the abolition of fines for failure to submit reports on controlled foreign companies until the end of martial law. In addition, draft law No. 10168-2 was adopted in its entirety. It is aimed at minimizing tax evasion, in particular during the export of grain and oil crops. After 6 months from the entry into force of the draft law, it is assumed that only VAT payers will be able to export these groups of...