Ireland banned crypto donations to political parties under new political integrity regulations devised in response to rising concerns about foreign interventions in the country’s politics. Minister Darragh O’Brien’s amendments also address regulations governing foreign donations, disinformation, and other transparency requirements for political parties, expressing concerns about Russian meddling in Ireland’s elections.
In an interview with the Independent on April 18th, O’Brien stated that the rules will strengthen Ireland’s democratic system “given the rising threat of cyber warfare attacking free nations” and that a newly constituted Electoral Commission will monitor compliance with the regulations.
It is unknown what proportion or monetary amount of political donations are now made via bitcoin to political parties or individuals.
Due to concerns over the impending Russia-Ukraine war, O’Brien launched his campaign to modify the regulations in January 2022, appointing a task team of political scientists and legal professionals to examine new election legislation.
The task group recommended a number of steps to create a “legal and digital bulwark” against election intervention in the nation, such as parties giving expedited accounting reporting and declarations on conformity to the new political fundraising regulations.
Ban on crypto political donations
The state of California outlawed crypto political donations in 2018, citing concerns about transparency and the fact that cryptocurrencies are “impossible to monitor”. According to Multistate statistics, three additional U.S. states, Oregon, Michigan, and North Carolina, have laws prohibiting the use of cryptocurrency in political finance.
The Irish central bank has previously been hostile to cryptocurrency; as recently as February, the bank indicated that it was unlikely to approve investment vehicles with crypto exposure for individual investors because they lacked a “high degree of knowledge”.
The Central Bank of Ireland likewise issued a caution to customers about crypto assets the following month, recommending they be cautious of “the risks of misleading advertisements, particularly on social media, where influencers are being paid to advertise crypto assets”.
