The Argentine treasury has seized more than 1,000 virtual wallets linked to delinquent taxpayers in the country.
According to a note from the local media iProUP, the courts throughout Argentina authorized the seizure of 1,269 virtual wallets belonging to citizens with outstanding debts with the Federal Administration of Public Revenues (AFIP) of Argentina.
The AFIP indicated its intention to go after the virtual wallets of delinquent taxpayers in May, mandating both cryptocurrency exchanges and payment service providers to deliver monthly reports on user activity on their platforms.
Digital wallet providers were required to verify the identity of customers and maintain records of user accounts, as well as detailed financial statements including income, expenses and monthly balances.
With the provision of this information by these companies to the treasury, the AFIP has been able to apply embargoes on the holdings of the wallets linked to the offending taxpayers in recent months.
The AFIP’s current standard operating procedure tends to target bank accounts and other liquid assets to recover debts in the first instance. If a taxpayer cannot pay his debt or is not banked, the AFIP will seek to seize other assets belonging to the individual.
The Covid-19 pandemic gave Argentines who were targeted by the AFIP a break, as a 19-month moratorium was applied on asset seizures to alleviate financial pressures on citizens.
The move comes as Argentines continue to bet on cryptocurrencies as a means to combat rising inflation, devaluation of the peso, and general economic malaise. A recent Reuters note, citing data from Americas Market Intelligence, notes that Argentina has seen a surge in cryptocurrency adoption that dwarfs other South American countries, driven by citizens seeking a safe haven from rising inflation.
As the Argentine tax authority goes after the digital assets of delinquent taxpayers, its government and its central bank have been at odds over the treatment of cryptocurrencies.
President Alberto Fernández made headlines by highlighting the potential of cryptocurrencies to help fight inflation in August 2021, just as the president of the Central Bank of Argentina, Miguel Pesce, hinted at an upcoming regulation of the sector and its intersection with the financial system. conventional.
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