Azerbaijani State Seizes Cryptocurrency in Landmark Ruling

Azerbaijan has made history in its handling of cryptocurrency, as a court confiscated digital assets for the first time on behalf of the state.

The case involved two individuals, B.G.R. and I.R.F., who were arrested by the State Security Service (SSS) and subsequently found guilty under Article 206-1.3 of the Criminal Code of Azerbaijan.

The pair was accused of organizing the illegal transfer of large amounts of money through exchanges and other settlement methods, both from within and outside the country.

B.G.R. received a two-year and five-month restriction of freedom sentence, along with a fine of 3,623,568 manats ($2,131,510), while I.R.F. was sentenced to three years in prison and fined 31,399,709 manats ($18,470,417).

The court's ruling also included the confiscation of 830 units of cryptocurrency held by B.G.R. in a frozen account with international virtual asset service Binance.