Russia’s State Duma — the lower house of the Russian Parliament — is reviewing regulation, to possibly legalize cryptocurrencies.
The State Duma’s financial market committee head Anatoly Aksakov told Bloomberg that more crypto-friendly law drafts are under review. He said that those drafts are expected to soon gain approval from senators in the Federation Council and then become law after approval by President Vladimir Putin on Sept. 1. He said:
Previously, there were fears that the legalization of cryptocurrency could create problems for the development of the domestic market. […] However, cryptocurrencies are an objective phenomenon and cannot be ignored.”
Russia to avoid sanctions with crypto?
Russia’s change of stance on cryptocurrencies follows mounting United States pressure considering the imposition of secondary sanctions on foreign banks.
Despite crypto payments being currently banned in Russia, Putin recently told local officials that cryptocurrencies “are increasingly used in the world as a means of payment in international settlements.” He also suggested that for the nation “not to miss the moment” to regulate crypto.
The new regulation would treat crypto usage in Russia the same as foreign currency usage, according to Aksakov. Crypto analyst Ani Aslanyan told Bloomberg that local authorities are in a hurry hoping that cryptocurrencies will improve cross-border transfers.
Still, the United States is likely to attempt to block Russia’s attempts at sanction evasion by monitoring and targeting crypto services and companies. Furthermore, the laws won’t completely liberalize cryptocurrencies.
Aslanyan noted that only large exporters are likely to meet the conditions for legal crypto usage, leaving small and medium-sized businesses behind. For instance, transactions will reportedly be restricted to those who have mined the coins themselves.
While Russia is looking for help in its defiance of Western powers in crypto, blockchain technology has stung the nation very recently. As ReadWrite reported back in May, following Vladimir Putin’s dubious victory in Russia’s recent presidential election exiled opposition leader Mark Feygin is spearheaded an initiative to enable Russians to anonymously register a “protest vote” against Putin using blockchain technology.