Florida’s Third District Court of Appeal Wednesday ruled Bitcoin qualifies as money in a case that turned on whether digital currency is driving financial crime.

The appellate court’s opinion reverses Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Teresa Pooler’s 2016 finding that digital or cryptocurrency could not be considered money under Florida law. The case in question concerned Miami Beach resident Michell Espinoza, who was charged with two counts of money laundering and acting as an unauthorized money transmitter operating through digital currency-trading website, LocalBitcoins.com.


Related story: Financial Crime Case May Hinge on Whether Bitcoin Is Money


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