Russia Gears Up for Crypto Regulation, Aims to Weaken USD Dominance

• Russia is actively developing regulations to harness cryptocurrencies for foreign trade, aligning with its goal to mitigate the impact of Western sanctions and reduce reliance on the U.S. dollar.
• The proposed regulatory changes and potential introduction of a yuan-pegged stablecoin underscore a collaborative push within the BRICS nations to establish alternative global financial systems.

After Russia legalized crypto mining as a move geared toward sanctions evasion and overtaking the US as the global crypto hub, discussed in a recent CNF update, Russia is set to finalize its crypto regulation framework by this coming November, according to Anatoly Aksakov, Chairman of the State Duma Financial Market Committee.

The process, which began earlier this year, is a collaborative effort between Russia’s Central Bank and the Ministry of Finance. The goal is to establish clear regulations and by-laws to oversee the use of cryptocurrencies in foreign trade and exchange trading under an experimental legal regime that took effect earlier this month.

A recent report by Chainalysis focusing on Russia’s pro-crypto moves explained:

These recent crypto-forward legislative efforts are part of Russia’s broader efforts to develop alternative payment mechanisms to alleviate Western sanctions pressure while decreasing dependence on the U.S. dollar, which has been a long-term goal for Russia, especially amidst increasing geopolitical tensions.

Gradual Rollout and Key Participants

Furthermore, the initial phase will involve select credit institutions and banks to help “test” the system, with plans to gradually expand the number of participants. Russia aims to regulate crypto without allowing it to fully replace the Ruble, restricting its use to foreign trade activities.

This move aligns with the broader goals of the BRICS Group, a bloc that includes Russia and other major economies, as they continue efforts to reduce reliance on the US dollar in cross-border transactions. Russia has even hinted at creating a yuan-pegged BRICS stablecoin to further support de-dollarization initiatives.

As reported by CNF, in the context of BRICS de-dollarization, Bitcoin and XRP are key alternatives for the 159 participants embracing the new payment system. At the time of writing, Ripple (XRP) is trading at $0.5697, having decreased by 3.02% in the past day and surged by 7.09% in the past week.