Myanmar crypto scam bill clears parliament

Myanmar’s combined Parliament approved the Anti-Online Scam Bill on July 28 after reconciling amendments adopted by its lower and upper chambers. Summary 10-year-to-life terms cover crypto scams and scam-centre operations under Myanmar’s published May draft legislation text. Parliament approved the bill July 28 after reconciling amendments previously adopted by both legislative chambers. Final text, presidential assent and commencement date remain unconfirmed in publicly available official records online. The legislation targets digital-currency fraud, online scam centres, forced scam labour and financial infrastructure used by fraud networks. The state-run Global New Light of Myanmar reported that the Pyidaungsu Hluttaw approved the bill in full. However, the final amended text, a presidential assent notice and a commencement date were not publicly available as of July 29. The exact penalties therefore remain based on the May draft and comments from lawmakers who reviewed the final version. What penalties does the Myanmar crypto scam bill contain? The 63-section draft published in May proposed prison terms of 10 years to life for operating an online scam centre or committing “digi...