Over 30 crypto wallets linked to the ‘Freedom Convoy’ truckers blocked

TL;DR Breakdown

A total of 34 cryptocurrency wallets purportedly linked to Canadian truckers protesting COVID-19 limitations and soliciting funds for the Freedom Convoy 2022 campaign with Bitcoin have been frozen, according to reports. 

According to The Counter Signal, Canada’s national police department, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), has issued an order forcing all FINTRAC-regulated firms in Canada to avoid engaging with 34 crypto wallets. However, it is not yet known whether the funds are blocked or not. 

However, the matter has sought enough attention that Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s invoked the emergency act. It is to be noted that this is the first time that the law will be used. 

Worth of one Freedom Convoy trucker wallet 

At least one wallet containing more than $1 million in Bitcoin has been validated as part of the HonkHonkHodl initiative to support truckers via cryptocurrency, which became one of the most important ways to help truckers when GoFundMe decided not to disperse $9 million collected on its site.

The federal authorities have identified around 29 Bitcoin addresses that have been reported to exchange the digital asset which is worth between $0 and $1.1 million. The police also requested to immediately transfer all the information of the transaction to the special task force.

Canadian government actions

This incident is an eye-opener for the Canadian government. The Canadian government is expanding the scope of the country’s anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing laws and regulations, targeting crowd-funding websites and payment processors.

Now, they must register with the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada to record any significant dubious donations they receive. The changes apply to all types of transactions, including bitcoin transactions.

The government is focusing its efforts on blocking the flow of funds to demonstrators and punishing those who offer financial support to what it considers illegal demonstrations. 

While the authorities are eager to collect any cash linked to the Freedom Convoy, the cryptocurrency funds are useless for the Canadian government if they are not stored at any Canadian cryptocurrency exchange. Due to this incident, the government has implemented new rules which solely deal with digital assets.