That banks all over the world are skeptical towards bitcoin and cryptocurrencies is a well-known fact. But now, a Norwegian bitcoin exchange is about to sue Nordea Bank to find out if it is legal for Norwegian banks to shut down accounts referring to the secret nature of crypto.
Strule Sunde, the founder of the Norwegian bitcoin exchange Bitmynt AS, had his corporate bank account shut down in 2017. Sunde was one of the largest dealers in Norway, making around 1 400 transactions every month last year, as reported by Hegnar.no.
The shut down came when the Norwegian secret police, Kripos, concluded that Bitmynt AS was being used by drug dealers to receive payments. According to Nordea Bank, this was enough for them to shut down the account, since they are unable to track transactions to stop money laundering and other criminal activity.
Strule Sunde claims that he is following all mandatory regulations and that Nordea Bank, therefore, has no right to close down his account.
The trial will be held at the Oslo district court this Thursday, April 19th. In order for the court to be able to judge the case, chief of police Eirik Sneeggen from Kripos will be called in as a witness on the last day of the trial, April 20th, writes Hegnar.no.
Trijo News will be reporting on the outcome of the trial.