Amidst the ongoing war and numerous sanctions imposed against Russia by the West, the Vladimir Putin led country is considering allowing cryptocurrency to be used for international payments, independent Russian news agency Interfax quoted a government official as saying last Friday, as per Reuters.
Ivan Chebeskov, head of the Russian finance ministry's financial policy department, was reportedly quoted as saying "The idea of using digital currencies in transactions for international settlements is being actively discussed."
Russian officials are reportedly wrestling with how to regulate the country's crypto market and use of digital currencies, with the finance ministry in opposition to the central bank's calls for a blanket ban.
Discussions have been ongoing for months and although the Russian government expects cryptocurrencies to be legalized as a means of payment sooner or later, no consensus has yet been reached, as per Reuters.
The finance ministry is reportedly discussing the addition of the latest proposal on international payments to an updated version of a draft law, the business daily Vedomosti unveiled, quoting government sources.?
Ivan Chebeskov also said ¡°Allowing crypto as a means of settlement for international trade would help counter the impact of Western sanctions, which has seen Russia's access to traditional cross-border payment mechanisms "limited," as per the Reuters report.
Earlier in March 2022, it was reported that Russia was also considering accepting Bitcoin as payment for its oil and gas exports.
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As per a report in Bitcoin.com, among the other proposals incorporated in the revised bill is a ban on the advertising of crypto trading platforms that are not licensed to operate in Russia. At the same time, authorized exchanges may be obliged to store information about cryptocurrency holders and their transactions for a period of three years and share the data with Russian law enforcement. Only customers that have passed identity verification will be able to buy and sell cryptocurrencies and only through Russian bank accounts.
The report also stated that a provision introduced with the latest revisions would allow Russian legal entities and individual entrepreneurs to use cryptocurrencies for payments with foreign counterparties, business daily Vedomosti revealed.?
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