Burundi

Cryptocurrencies are not recognized as legal tender in Burundi.

They are not regulated by the BRB, meaning there is no legal protection for users or investors.

They carry significant risks, including price volatility, lack of consumer protection, and potential use for illicit activities such (e.g., money laundering and terrorist financing).

Financial institutions are explicitly prohibited from engaging in cryptocurrency-related activities.

Cryptocurrency Exchanges: Operating a crypto exchange in Burundi is prohibited.

Custody Providers: Providing crypto custody services is prohibited.

Payment Processors: Engaging in payment processing for transactions involving cryptocurrencies is prohibited. Traditional fiat payment processors would still require relevant licenses from the BRB for their conventional operations, but these licenses would not extend to virtual assets.

Minimum Capital Requirements: To ensure financial stability and solvency of operators.

Robust AML/KYC Obligations: To combat money laundering and terrorist financing, requiring identity verification of customers and transaction monitoring.

Local Presence: Often a requirement for financial services providers to ensure effective oversight and consumer protection.

Communiqué N° BRB/DGD/2021-002 du 16 Décembre 2021 de la Banque de la République du Burundi (Bank of the Republic of Burundi Communiqué No. BRB/DGD/2021-002 of December 16, 2021).

This communiqué specifically warned the public against the risks of cryptocurrencies and prohibited financial institutions from dealing with them.

Official Source: While direct links to specific BRB PDFs can change, you would typically find these under the "Communiqués" or "Publications" section of the BRB's official website.

You may need to navigate to the "Publications" or "Communiqués" section and search for the specific year (2021) and document number.

Payment: As a medium of exchange.

Investment: As an asset for speculation or capital appreciation.

Fundraising: For initial coin offerings (ICOs) or other token sales.

Bank of the Republic of Burundi Communiqué (March 2019): This is the most significant regulatory action. The BRB issued a communiqué warning the public against the use and trading of virtual currencies, highlighting the risks of fraud, money laundering, terrorist financing, and market manipulation. It explicitly stated that cryptocurrencies are not recognized as legal tender or a regulated financial product in Burundi and that local banks and financial institutions are prohibited from facilitating transactions involving them. This communal acts as a de facto ban within the formal financial system.

While not an "enforcement" against a specific entity, it serves to prevent activity and creates a legal basis for future enforcement if someone were to openly defy it. Any entity found to be engaging in unauthorized financial activities (including crypto-related ones) could face penalties under existing banking and financial laws for operating outside regulatory licenses.

Bank of the Republic of Burundi (BRB):

The Communiqué of March 2019 (or similar subsequent updates) is the primary regulatory guidance. While direct links to historical communiqués in English might be difficult to find on the BRB's site, its existence and content are widely reported by regional news outlets and legal firms. You would typically find it under "Communiqués" or "Publications" on their website.

Note: The BRB's official communiqués are often published in French.

Law No. 1/01 of January 20, 2011, on the Regulation of the Financial Market: This law (and any subsequent amendments) governs the financial market in Burundi and establishes the Financial Market Authority (AMF). While it doesn't mention crypto, it would be the foundational legal text if crypto assets were ever to be formally regulated as securities.

Finding the specific legal text online can be challenging; often, these are available through legislative databases or local legal counsel.

Subsequent Amendments and Regulations: The law is subject to updates and specific regulations issued by relevant authorities, primarily the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) and the Central Bank.

Identification and verification of beneficial owners under FinCEN’s CDD Rule is risk‑based and may be limited by covered financial institutions, rather than being an unconditional, blanket requirement for all federal business relationships.

For individuals, identity verification for customer due diligence may be performed using reliable, independent source documents, data, or information, and may also use non-documentary methods such as third-party data, direct contact, or other reasonable verification procedures; utility bills may be used for address verification where permitted.

For Legal Entities: Obtaining and verifying the legal name, form, proof of existence, powers that regulate and bind the entity, and the identity of the natural persons who are beneficial owners.

Understanding the Business Relationship: Obtaining information on the purpose and intended nature of the business relationship.

Ongoing Monitoring: Conducting ongoing due diligence on the business relationship and scrutiny of transactions undertaken throughout the course of that relationship to ensure that the transactions are consistent with the obliged entity's knowledge of the customer, their business, and risk profile.

Risk-Based Approach: Applying a risk-based approach, meaning:

Simplified CDD (SCDD): Allowed for lower-risk customers, products, or transactions.

Enhanced CDD (ECDD): Required for higher-risk situations, such as:

Large value transactions (thresholds would be defined in specific regulations)

Transactions involving new technologies or anonymous transactions where the risks are not mitigated.

Under FATF Recommendation 15 and its interpretive note, virtual asset service providers (VASPs) are expected to be explicitly licensed or registered and directly subject to full AML/CFT requirements—including customer due diligence (CDD), record‑keeping, ongoing monitoring, suspicious transaction reporting, and Travel Rule obligations—on the same footing as other regulated financial institutions, rather than having CDD applied only hypothetically or merely ‘by analogy’ if they were formally regulated.

Source of funds/wealth verification for significant transactions.

Regulated institutions are expected to conduct risk‑based, ongoing sanctions and broader watchlist screening of customers, their transactions, counterparties, and beneficial owners against up‑to‑date sanctions lists and other relevant watchlists (such as PEP, law‑enforcement, and similar datasets), rather than limiting checks to one‑off customer screening only.

In Burundi, while Law No. 023/2026 mandates sender and recipient information for virtual asset transfers, it lacks explicit regulation for unhosted wallets, making implementation difficult as originally claimed.

Reporting Thresholds: While specific thresholds might exist for certain fiat transactions, the primary obligation is to report any transaction (regardless of amount) that is suspected of being related to money laundering or terrorist financing.

Content of Report: Reports must contain all relevant information about the customer, the transaction, and the grounds for suspicion.

No Tipping-Off: Obliged entities, their directors, officers, and employees are prohibited from disclosing to the customer or any third party that a STR has been or will be submitted.

Copies of identification documents obtained during CDD.

Account files, business correspondence, and transaction data.

Records of suspicious transaction reports submitted.

Retention Period: Records must typically be kept for a minimum period of five (5) years after the business relationship ends or after the date of the occasional transaction.

Burundi’s financial intelligence unit is the Cellule Nationale du Renseignement Financier (CENTIF), whose legal framework was modified by a 2026 decree, indicating the current official designation and organization should be read in that updated form.

CENTIF is the central national authority responsible for receiving, analyzing, and disseminating suspicious transaction reports to law enforcement agencies for investigation and prosecution. It also plays a role in developing AML/CFT policies and guidelines.

URL: http://www.centif.bi/ (Note: Website availability and content can vary over time).

Banque de la République du Burundi (BRB) – The Central Bank of Burundi:

Regulatory Ambiguity and Risk: Given the lack of specific VASP regulation and the central bank's cautionary stance, operating a cryptocurrency service in Burundi could be deemed operating without proper authorization or even be subject to bans.

Burundi is not yet aligned with FATF Recommendation 15 on virtual assets, and no specific legislative measures have been announced to address this gap.

Local Legal Counsel: Any entity considering providing VASP services in Burundi should seek urgent advice from local legal counsel specializing in financial services and AML/CFT to understand the current legal status, potential risks, and any implicit obligations under existing laws.

There is no current, specific regulation in Burundi that defines which VASPs are covered, making the claim outdated or incorrect.

Loi N° 1/03 du 10 Janvier 2017 portant prévention et répression du blanchiment d'argent et du financement du terrorisme au Burundi (Law N° 1/03 of 10 January 2017 on the Prevention and Suppression of Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing in Burundi):

While difficult to find an official English translation or direct government URL for the full text, it is the cornerstone of Burundi's AML/CFT framework.

ESAAMLG Mutual Evaluation Report of Burundi (2018):

URL: https://www.esaamlg.org/reports/view/17804 (You'll need to navigate to "Mutual Evaluation Report of Burundi" and download the PDF).

Relevant excerpts from the 2018 MER (pre-dating the full Travel Rule guidance for R.15 but indicating general status): The report would typically note if virtual assets are addressed. For Burundi in 2018, the framework was not yet adapted to cover virtual assets.

There is no explicit 'Custodial License Requirement' in the latest Burundian regulations; enforcement focuses on sanctions compliance.

Cryptocurrency custody in Burundi is prohibited by law, thus no specific insurance or bonding requirements are mandated for cryptocurrency custodians.

Segregation of Client Assets Rules:

None Specified: Given the lack of specific crypto regulation, there are no explicit rules or mandates for the segregation of client digital assets from the custodian's own assets. In traditional finance, this is a cornerstone of investor protection, but it has not been extended to digital assets in Burundi's legal framework.

None Specified: There are no specific insurance or bonding requirements mandated for cryptocurrency custodians in Burundi. Providers would operate without such safeguards unless they voluntarily implement them as part of their business practice.

None Specified: There are no specific regulatory mandates requiring the use of cold storage (offline storage) for digital assets held in custody. Custodians are free to adopt their own security practices without specific regulatory guidance on this matter.

None Specified: Burundi's legal and regulatory framework does not define what constitutes a "qualified custodian" for digital assets. This term, common in jurisdictions with mature crypto regulations (e.g., the U.S.), has no specific meaning or application under Burundian law concerning cryptocurrencies.

No Public Information: As of the latest available information, there is no publicly announced or pending legislation specifically addressing cryptocurrency custody or a broader digital asset regulatory framework in Burundi. While the global trend points towards increased regulation of digital assets, Burundi has not yet indicated movement in this direction.

Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Counter-Terrorist Financing (CFT) Laws: Burundi, like most countries, has AML/CFT laws (e.g., Law N°1/04 of February 24, 2010 on the Fight against Money Laundering and the Financing of Terrorism, and subsequent amendments) that would generally apply to financial transactions and institutions. While these laws do not explicitly mention cryptocurrencies, financial institutions facilitating any transactions that involve digital assets might be expected to adhere to general AML/CFT principles if they were to engage in such activities.

Central Bank Warnings: The Banque de la République du Burundi (BRB) has previously issued warnings about the risks associated with cryptocurrencies. These warnings typically advise the public that cryptocurrencies are not recognized as legal tender and are not regulated by the BRB, meaning users lack consumer protection from the central bank.

The Banque de la République du Burundi Official Website no longer provides crypto warnings due to the Central Bank of Burundi's ban on cryptocurrencies.

Banque de la République du Burundi Official Website (Note: The content on specific crypto warnings might not be readily available in English or archived on the main site directly, but this is the authoritative source for Burundian financial regulation).

The general overview no longer routinely cites the BRB's position; newer Burundi reports indicate a shift in regulatory emphasis.

While not a direct comprehensive fintech regulatory text, the Central Bank of the Republic of Burundi (BRB) has issued new AML/CFT regulations, indicating that Burundi now has specific regulatory measures in place rather than just general central bank warnings.