The Legal Nature of Cryptocurrency

Abstract

Abstract The article is a result of the cryptocurrency research with the view of its legal nature. Appearing in 2009, based on blockchain technology, cryptocurrency has quickly become worldwide popular and formed a new sphere of public relations which badly needs regulation and control from a government. One of the main problems is definition of cryptocurrency’s legal nature, i.e. answer to the question: what is cryptocurrency as an object of legal regulation? It is not easy to answer one because cryptocurrency in its matter and functions has resemblance not only with money but also with goods and non-documentary securities. Defining legal nature and status of cryptocurrency, governments of the world have an opportunity to either legally equate it to one of the existing objects of legal regulation or confront more complicated task which is to accept cryptocurrency as a fundamentally new object of legal regulation, give it legal definition based on its economic essence and start creating corresponding legislation. Author has researched special features of blockchain technology functions and emission of cryptocurrency, studied practices of legal regulations of cryptocurrency in various countries, considered positions of different states in defining legal nature of cryptocurrency and made relevant conclusions and suggestions.