Russia Is About To Legalize Cryptocurrency For International Trading

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s administration is bringing new changes to the utilization of crypto assets and blockchain technology in the nation to overcome the monopoly of the United States dollar system. The world’s largest country, Russia, is close to recognizing cryptocurrency for international trade.

The head of the State Duma finance committee reportedly said Russia would legalize digital assets for international trading. Anatoly Aksakov, Russia’s Congressional finance committee chairman, said, “In January, we want to legalize cryptocurrencies to ensure foreign trade activities.”

In the ongoing war with Ukraine, Russian trade was severely affected due to Western sanctions. So in September, the government entities planned to legalize cryptocurrency in the country to overcome the trade barriers. Popular analysts believed introducing new cryptocurrency regulations would help Russia overcome US sanctions against the country.

Earlier, Alexey Moiseev, Deputy Finance Minister, said, “We are rethinking it. Because the infrastructure that we plan to create is too rigid for the use of cryptocurrencies in cross-border settlements.”

Soon, Russia will allow cryptocurrency transactions

However, the country is not going to allow cryptocurrency utilization within national boundaries. Russia’s financial authority is working on new crypto regulation draft bills that will be introduced in parliament by the end of 2022.

The chairman highlighted, “The circulation of cryptocurrencies as a means of payment on the territory of Russia will be prohibited, and liability will be prescribed in this regard. But to pay for foreign trade transactions, we still assume the possibility of using cryptocurrencies, for example, for parallel imports.”

In February 2022, the Bank of Russia stated that it would ban the trading and mining of cryptocurrency in the nation. The organization believed that there was a lack of security in digital currency, which could jeopardize Russia’s financial stability.

“I hope that, in the best-case scenario, it could be passed in the spring session,” finance minister Siluanov stated. He further stated that the monetary authority proposed a team to identify crypto traders that could separate the “white market from the gray market.”

Russia’s largest bank Sber’s partnership with Ethereum

In a recent press conference, Sber bank stated that Ethereum, the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, was the perfect crypto platform to introduce smart contracts and digital transactions. Sber’s largest shareholder was the Russian government, with a “50%+1 share,” which made the decision.

The bank said crypto users could easily make transactions on the bank’s blockchain network and Ethereum. Sber’s blockchain platform will collaborate with Consensys Metamask wallet for IP tracking.

Andrew is a blockchain developer who developed his interest in cryptocurrencies while his post-graduation. He is a keen observer of details and shares his passion for writing along with being a developer. His backend knowledge about blockchain helps him give a unique perspective to his writing