Canada is moving ahead with Bill C-25, a proposal that would bar political donations made through cryptocurrency and other hard-to-trace payment channels. The bill also targets wire transfers and prepaid cards, with the stated aim of making campaign finance easier to monitor and more transparent.
The bill reaches beyond digital assets
The proposed ban is not limited to crypto. Wire transfers and prepaid cards are included as well, reflecting concerns that these methods can make donor verification and payment tracing harder for election authorities. The focus of the legislation is clear: political contributions should be recorded in a way that allows close oversight, rather than relying on loose reporting after the fact.
Since 2019, crypto donations in Canadian politics have been treated administratively as non-cash assets. Even so, neither of the country’s two major political parties publicly accepted crypto contributions during the 2021 federal election or for the upcoming 2025 federal election. Public disclosure from major parties on their positions toward digital asset donations has also been limited.
Crypto donations never took hold in the existing system
One reason cited in the source is practical rather than ideological. Donations made in cryptocurrency do not qualify donors for a tax receipt, which is a major incentive in Canada’s political fundraising system. That left crypto contributions with little traction inside the conventional framework for campaign finance.
After the 2022 election, the Chief Electoral Officer called for tighter rules on crypto-based political contributions in an official post-election report. Among the recommendations was removing a rule that allowed some donations under C$200 to be treated as having zero value. By November 2024, the Chief Electoral Officer sharpened that position, saying the partially anonymous nature of cryptocurrencies was making donor identification increasingly difficult and that a full ban was necessary.
Thirty-day disposal rule and steep fines
The new provisions echo an earlier proposal in Bill C-65, which failed to become law after Parliament was suspended at the start of 2025. Bill C-25 has now passed first reading in the House of Commons and is moving through the legislative process.
If enacted, any political contribution received through prohibited methods, including crypto, would have to be dealt with within 30 days. That could mean refunding it, destroying it, or converting it into cash and forwarding the proceeds to the government. The penalty structure is strict. Individuals who violate the rules could be fined up to double the donated amount, while legal entities may face an added penalty of up to C$100,000.
Canada joins a wider debate on political finance and crypto
Canada is not alone in tightening scrutiny. The United Kingdom recently imposed a temporary ban on political donations made with cryptocurrency, citing the risk that digital assets can obscure foreign funding sources. The United States has taken a different route. It has allowed cryptocurrency donations to election campaigns since 2014, and the Federal Election Commission has issued detailed guidance on how political committees must report them.
Parliamentary debate on Bill C-25 is still underway. Based on the text now in circulation, Canada’s priority is not integrating crypto into political fundraising, but closing off payment methods that regulators believe weaken traceability and donor identification.