Restrictions on the right of ownership of virtual assets in criminal proceedings

The subject of this article is to analyze the peculiarities of restricting the right of ownership of cryptocurrencies, as a type of virtual asset, in criminal proceedings, through the prism of the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Law of Ukraine, as well as the specific legal nature of cryptocurrency as a virtual asset. An analysis of the domestic doctrine of criminal procedural law in terms of restrictions on ownership rights to virtual assets shows that this issue is quite relevant, given, first of all, the rapid development of virtual assets as a specific economic and legal phenomenon. Virtual assets, in particular cryptocurrencies, in the modern world act as both the object and subject of various criminal offenses, which necessitates the development and further implementation of relevant and fair approaches to restricting ownership rights to virtual assets that would be properly synchronized with the objectives and general principles of criminal proceedings as defined by the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine, as well as ensuring the application of due legal process to participants in criminal proceedings.

This scientific publication examines issues related to the definition of the legal nature of cryptocurrency as a virtual asset and considers the legal grounds for restricting ownership rights to cryptocurrencies, in particular through seizure and the procedure for special confiscation of cryptocurrencies. At the same time, the author demonstrates the existence of illogical approaches to the seizure of virtual assets in criminal proceedings in domestic judicial practice, given the frequent cases of seizure of cryptocurrency assets for the purpose of preserving material evidence (para. 1, part 2, Article 170 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine), and analyzes the approaches of foreign states to the issue of restricting ownership rights to virtual assets, in particular cryptocurrencies. The author also separately analyzes topical issues of proving ownership of virtual assets, taking into account the normative provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine, as well as the judicial practice of the High Anti-Corruption Court, highlighting the problematic aspects of such proof.