Zimbabwe HC Lifts Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe’s Ban on Trading Cryptocurrencies

On May 11th, Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe released a circular instructing all domestic financial institutions to stop providing services to all cryptocurrency exchanges and begin liquidating existing cryptocurrency-related accounts, giving a 60 days ultimatum.

Read more: Central Bank Of Zimbabwe Bans Financial Institutions From Dealing in Cryptocurrencies

In the latest news, Zimbabwe’s High Court has reversed the ban on crypto-currency trading by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe after a local virtual currency exchange house, Golix, challenged the decision.

Golix, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in Zimbabwe, submitted a High Court challenge stating that the RBZ does not have any authority to declare cryptocurrencies illegal. Golix is arguing that only the country’s legislative body, the parliament, has the authority to formulate laws that ban virtual currencies. It is also arguing that the RBZ did not give adequate time for notice and a right of response when it issued its ban.

The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe did not show up to the court hearing at the High Court and thus the High Court issued a default judgement in favour of Golix. This means that the ban imposed by the RBZ has been suspended.

Nhlalwenhle Ngwenya, communications manager at Golix, “The ban was lifted”. However, a proper statement is yet to follow.

Golix had stopped the order book on Thursday as it sought to deal with the disruption to its operations after the central bank ban, the exchange said in a notice to members Thursday morning.

Advocate Fadzai Mahere who was part of the team of the people challenging the ban announced the news via her twitter account,

“RBZ ban on cryptos lifted by the High Court. Administrative justice is alive and well in this jurisdiction. Section 68 of the Constitution is our best friend,” 

Hopefully, with this news, Crypto traders in India who are engulfed by the same scenario can find a little ray of hope since they have been battling with Reserve Bank of India’s ban of cryptocurrency dealings.

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