Canada Announces Crypto, Stablecoin Consultation in New Budget Statement

Canada's federal government announced it was launching a consultation on "cryptocurrencies, stablecoins and central bank digital currencies," in a fiscal update published Thursday.

The Fall Economic Statement, a mini-budget released by Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, is the government's fiscal road map over the coming months. Among provisions on taxes, recovering from COVID-19 and hurricanes, and budget projections was a section on the "digitalization of money," which highlighted cryptocurrencies and digital assets and their use worldwide.

Cryptocurrencies are "transforming financial systems" both in Canada and elsewhere, the document said, adding that Canada's financial regulatory frameworks have to "keep pace."

"The digitalization of money poses a challenge to democratic institutions around the world. In the last several months, digital assets and cryptocurrencies have been used to avoid global sanctions and fund illegal activities, both in Canada and around the world," the document said in part of the document titled "effective government."

To address this, the government launched a consultation on digital currencies on Thursday, the document said. This includes a legislative review addressing financial stability and security, as well as other digitalization, according to the document.

Canada made headlines earlier this year when Prime Minister Justin Trudeau invoked the country's "Emergencies Act" in response to a weeks-long protest by truckers that blocked the U.S.-Canada border, ordering banks to freeze and suspend accounts tied to the protestors, including bitcoin donated.

Much of the $24 million raised, including some of the crypto funds, remain frozen as of this week, according to canada.com, a news organization operated by Postmedia Network.