Court Issues Freeze Order for Millions in Crypto Donated to Canadian Protesters

A Superior Court in Ontario, a popular province in Canada, has reportedly issued a Mareva injunction in connection with millions worth of cryptocurrencies donated to protesting truckers.

Per the order, leaders and fundraisers of Canada protest group Freedom Convoy, are restrained from “selling, removing, dissipating, alienating, transferring” any of the assets raised for the protests including cryptocurrencies.

Mareva Injunction is a form of injunctive order that prevents international movement and dissipation of assets while legal proceedings are ongoing. It can also be called a freezing order.

According to the report, the order was issued late Thursday and served on the Facebook and Twitter accounts of the organizers of the protest. The order also affected crypto exchanges in the country.

Why a Mareva Injunction?

Freedom Convoy is the name of a protest group recently formed in Canada. The members of the group are strongly against COVID-19 vaccine mandate for truckers entering the country. Supporters of the protest have made fiat as well as crypto donations such as bitcoin, dedicated to fueling, feeding, and housing of protesters until their demands are met.

The Mareva injunction recently issued is a measure put in place by Canada to counter the protests by freezing donated assets including cryptocurrencies.

“This court orders that each Mareva Respondent shall prepare and provide to the Plaintiffs, within 7 days of the date of service of this Order, a sworn statement describing the nature, value, and location of his or her assets (including cryptocurrencies) worldwide.”

Canadian Crypto Exchanges Affected Yet Again

Per the report, the order also affects several crypto exchanges in the country, including TallyCoin, BitBuy and Bull Bitcoin, amongst others.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) is said to have sent letters to these exchanges, listing digital wallet addresses linked to some of the protesters. The letter urged the exchanges to cease providing transaction services to the identified addresses.

The Mareva injunction recently put in place in Canada comes a few days after the Emergency Act was invoked in the country.

The Act also puts all payment service providers in the country, including crypto payment firms, under restrictions. They were obligated to report large transactions that take place through their platform as they could be related to Freedom Convoy.