Binance is one of the most popular cryptocurrency exchanges among Ukrainians. At the same time, it is the first foreign platform where crypto assets are increasingly becoming objects of arrest in criminal proceedings.
Ukrainian courts are trying to find answers to difficult questions: are virtual assets property that can be seized? How to interpret “exchange wallets” if the exchange itself does not have a representative office in Ukraine? And can cryptocurrency be material evidence?
🔹 Судова практика щодо арешту криптовалюти на Binance
In 2023–2024, numerous requests for the seizure of cryptocurrencies in Binance accounts appeared in proceedings under Art. 258-5 (financing of terrorism) and 209 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (legalization and laundering of proceeds). The typical wording of the prosecutor in the request for the seizure of cryptocurrency sounds like this: "I request the seizure of cryptocurrency funds (virtual assets) located in the account of user XXXXX on the Binance exchange (Internet company - binance.com)."
Courts consider such petitions differently and, as we can see from the following case law, courts make contradictory decisions:
- Decision No. 760/15406/23 dated 08/31/2023 – the seizure of USDT was canceled at the request of the property owner, as the court recognized that the cryptocurrency has no legal status in Ukraine.
- Decision No. 760/6197/23 dated 03.04.2023 – the arrest was upheld, since the cryptocurrency is considered evidence in criminal proceedings.
- Decision No. 760/17139/23 dated 08/10/2023 – the court refused to cancel the seizure, emphasizing that “despite the lack of physical substance, the asset meets the requirements of physical evidence.”
🔹Які аргументи використовують у суді?
Arguments of the prosecution (prosecutor):
- Cryptocurrency is the subject of a transaction or crime.
- The exchange holds assets in the interests of the user, so there is a possibility of seizure.
- Tax evasion or money laundering is carried out through these platforms.
Defense position:
- National legislation does not define cryptocurrency as property.
- There is no mechanism for implementing or evaluating cryptocurrency.
- The user is not a suspect – therefore the arrest is an excessive interference with property rights.
🔹 Чи визнає суд криптовалюту майном або доказом?
The approaches of the courts are heterogeneous. In some cases, the seizure is canceled because cryptocurrency “is not an object of legal regulation,” while in others, the court refers to Article 170 of the CPC and recognizes the possibility of seizing virtual assets “as evidence in the case.”
The most common classifications:
- Property – if cryptocurrency is recognized as a source of illicit gain.
- Physical evidence – if the asset was transferred or used in a crime.
- Instruments of crime – in drug trafficking, fraud, or terrorist financing.
🔹 Ризики для користувачів Binance в Україні
Holding assets on Binance does not protect against arrests. Access to an account via IP or email may be grounds for determining your wallet as subject to arrest. If the account was associated with criminal proceedings, arrest may be imposed even without formal service of suspicion. At the same time, returning assets after arrest is difficult if the person does not have official status in the case.
🔹 Що варто враховувати власнику криптогаманця
Indicate in the petition for the cancellation of the seizure that the cryptocurrency has no legal status, no tangible object, and is impossible to sell. The seizure of crypto without suspicion is a violation of the right to property under the Convention on Human Rights (Protocol No. 1). The position of the European Court in such cases: interference with the right to property is possible only on the basis of a lawful, proportionate, and reasoned decision.
Courts in Ukraine are increasingly faced with cryptocurrency cases, but the lack of a clear legal status makes it difficult to reach unambiguous decisions.
Binance acts as a catalyst – it is this platform that has become the entry point of cryptocurrency into the legal field. It is because of Binance cases that lawyers, judges and legislators are forced to form a position on virtual assets.
Until a final legal settlement, cryptocurrency will remain between “property” and “nothing” in the courts.
