While European regulators carefully refine frameworks like MiCA to usher crypto into the mainstream, Algeria has taken a sharply different approach—one marked by a decisive clampdown. A new provision, Article 6 bis, published in the Official Journal on July 24, 2025, leaves no ambiguity: the country has now outlawed its entire cryptocurrency ecosystem.

Positioning itself as the staunch protector of the Algerian Dinar, the government argues that the ban is vital for safeguarding national monetary sovereignty. Its official justification echoes a well-worn narrative—preventing money laundering, curbing the financing of terrorism, and protecting citizens from fraud and the dangers of “uncontrolled speculation.”

For Algeria’s fast-growing but discreet crypto community, the dream of seamless, borderless finance has hit a solid wall of resistance. Though cryptocurrencies were technically banned back in 2018, the earlier legislation was vague and inconsistently enforced. This new law is anything but unclear.

What Exactly Is Illegal?
The revised law explicitly bans a wide array of crypto-related activities. Anyone hoping to navigate around the rules with clever loopholes will be sorely disappointed. The prohibited actions include:

• Issuing: Creating a new coin or token.
  
• Purchasing or Selling: Basic crypto trading on any platform.
  
• Using: Employing cryptocurrency as a means of payment.
  
• Holding: Simply possessing virtual assets is now illegal—a major escalation targeting both casual users and long-term “hodlers.”
  
• Trading: Speculating on cryptocurrency price movements.
  
• Promoting: Advertising, content creation, or public advocacy related to crypto.
  
• Platform Operations: Creating or running a crypto exchange.
  
• Mining: Using computational power to validate transactions or earn cryptocurrency.
  

In short, if it involves crypto, it’s almost certainly against the law.

Fines or Jail—Or Both
These bans are reinforced with stiff penalties. Under the newly introduced Article 31 bis, violators can face jail time ranging from two months to one year.

Additionally—or alternatively—a court may impose a fine between 200,000 DA and 1,000,000 DA, which translates to roughly €1,300 to €6,700 at current exchange rates. The law leaves room for judicial discretion, allowing judges to issue either or both forms of punishment.

This legal shift recasts crypto activity from a grey-area financial behavior into a prosecutable criminal offence.

An Outlier on the Global Stage

Algeria’s zero-tolerance approach places it among a dwindling group of nations choosing prohibition over regulation. In contrast, regional neighbors like the UAE are positioning themselves as crypto-friendly hubs. Algeria, meanwhile, appears determined to build a digital wall.

Globally, the move stands in stark contrast to prevailing trends. The European Union is rolling out its Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation to standardize and legitimize the sector. In the Americas, El Salvador has famously adopted Bitcoin as legal tender, and the United States continues its complex, often contradictory, regulatory push.

By choosing this route, Algiers is wagering that the dangers of financial instability and illicit use of crypto outweigh the promise of innovation in digital finance. For local technologists and those who saw crypto as a hedge against inflation or a vehicle for financial inclusion, the message is unmistakable: take your innovation elsewhere.

The government has drawn its line in the digital sand. The only question that remains is how users will respond—whether they will retreat from crypto altogether or push their activities deeper underground, powered by VPNs, peer-to-peer networks, and a renewed sense of defiance. The tug-of-war between state control and emerging technologies has entered a new phase.

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