Supreme Court of Estonia rules in favor of restrictions on bitcoin trading

The Supreme Court of Estonia has ruled in favor of restrictions on bitcoin trading activity and ordered bitcoin trading to be included into the purview of anti-money laundering legislation.

The Supreme Court’s decision comes as a part of the case involving Otto de Voogd, a Bitcoin Entrepreneur. Otto de Voogd was operating a bitcoin exchange called BTC.ee which was shut down by the country’s law enforcement agencies.

The suit traces back to 2014, when Otto de Voogd was first contacted by Estonian police in connection with the operation of BTC.ee. De Voogd later suspended the service, citing threats of fines and jail time from the police.

According to De Voogd, not only did the courts rule against him regarding releasing the information of his clients, but they also levied additional restrictions and hurdles to conducting Bitcoin business within the country.