Moroccan authorities crack down on property purchases with crypto

The Moroccan government is investigating claims that nationals are bypassing legal procedures by using cryptocurrencies to purchase real estate abroad.

Authorities suspect that buyers are leveraging crypto’s anonymity to evade regulations.

The details 

• According to Moroccan media, the country’s Foreign Exchange Office is spearheading investigations into these claims. 
• International partners alerted the agency to suspicious real estate transactions involving Moroccan nationals in Spain and the UAE.
• Moroccan nationals are allegedly using large amounts of cryptocurrency to purchase properties abroad, bypassing official banking channels and required authorization. 
• These transactions occur on decentralized exchanges with minimal KYC requirements, making it difficult for Moroccan authorities to trace the origin of the funds used for property purchases. 
• Investigators claim to have identified individuals involved, though the methods used remain undisclosed. 

Before now 

• Cryptocurrencies are banned in Morocco since 2017, and its usage has been criminalized. 
• In 2023, officials arrested and prosecuted a French national for purchasing items in the country and paying with bitcoin. 
• Despite regulatory restrictions, crypto adoption in Morocco has grown steadily, making it the top recipient of crypto value in North Africa in 2022.
•  Blockchain analytics firm, Chainalysis also rated the country as the second fastest-growing crypto market in Africa in 2022 and ranked it in the top 20 worldwide for crypto adoption in 2023. 
• This suggests that despite the ban still in place, crypto continues to grow in the country albeit without the government’s approval. 
• To address crypto-related concerns, Morocco’s central bank began drafting a cryptocurrency regulation bill in 2022, but despite announcing its completion six months later, it has yet to be passed.