News outlet RBK is reporting Sunday that according to a new statement from the Belarusian Internal Affairs Ministry, Belarus is enacting new crypto regulations which will ban the exchange of cryptocurrencies between individuals.

The Ministry notes the regulations are an attempt to rein in crypto fraud, protect crypto users, and prevent criminal gangs from laundering funds.

The ministry was quoted as saying, “Such transactions are in demand among fraudsters, who thus cash out and convert stolen funds, transfer sums of money to organizers or participants in criminal organizations.”

The report noted that since the beginning of the year, authorities have arrested 27 individuals for illegally facilitating crypto transactions. The total sum of the transactions involved amounted to 22 million Belarusian rubles ($8.8 million).

The government regulations specify that once they go into effect, in Belarus all crypto transactions will have to be performed through the Belarus Hi-Tech Park (HTP) exchanges, so as to maintain “transparency and control.” The Belarus HTP is an IT hub which has a special tax and legal scheme.

Belarus made crypto-related activities such as trading and mining legal in 2018, however they had to be performed by entities which had registered with the HTP.

At the same time, the government has been working extensively to combat illegal operations utilizing cryptocurrencies. The Justice Ministry enacted legal frameworks which allowed for the seizure of crypto assets by law enforcement last April. Before that, President Alexander Lukashenko ordered that crypto wallets which had been used for illegal purposes be placed in a special register.