The Estonian Financial Intelligence Unit on Friday stopped its investigation of a Bitcoin trader in the Northern Baltic European nation. The decision comes after Otto de Voogd had evidently exercised his right to remain silent over the course of two years.
In February 2014, de Voogd’s BTC.ee announced it “temporarily stopped trading due to threats issued by Estonian police.” The Estonian Financial Intelligence Unit and Border Guard Board emailed de Voogd, demanding details about the company’s registration, anti-money laundering procedures and other due diligence processes ‒ proof that he was operating in accordance with the law .
If he failed to comply, de Voogd faced three years in prison and a maximum fine of 32,000 euros. But authorities never brought formal charges against de Voogd, who calls himself a “Bitcoin hobbyist.”
De Voogd crowdsourced a small part of his legal battle. (He keeps an overview of expenses and donations here .)
He told Bitcoin Magazine he worried that if he provided the information requested by the authorities it could be used against him in court. Estonia previously charged another person for trading 2,000 euros worth of bitcoins. De Voogd, who has had approximately 9,000 euros in lawyers fees and 1,000 euros in donations, indicates his trades totaled a modestly higher amount.
He admits to profiting from the sale of bitcoins ‒ to the tune of about 270 euros. Many traders in the space make approximately one percent profit. A Bitcoiner from the Netherlands, de Voogd claims Estonia acted in violation of European Law by extending anti-money laundering laws to Bitcoin without justifying and registering the changes with the European Commission.
Throughout his trial, de Voogd claimed a “systematic attempt by Estonia to thwart Bitcoin.” He cites an imposed VAT on the total value of Bitcoin, which differs from other European nations which impose VAT mostly […]
