Cryptocurrencies in Russia will not be banned. The government approved the concept of regulation
The Russian government has approved the concept of legislative regulation of the circulation of digital currencies. This will be a regulation "with strict obligations for all participants," the Cabinet of Ministers emphasizes. In January, the Central Bank proposed to ban the mining and circulation of cryptocurrencies.
Russian President Vladimir Putin asked the departments to come to a consensus, and the State Duma began to prepare its bill on this topic. The Ministry of Finance of Russia has prepared a concept for regulating cryptocurrencies in the country without their prohibition.
On Tuesday, February 8, the government press service reported that the Cabinet of Ministers approved the concept of legislative regulation of the circulation of digital currencies.
The concept provides for the division of investors into qualified and unqualified, as follows from the message.
Protection of the rights of investors will also be ensured through the requirements for licensing cryptocurrency platforms. Those, in turn, will be required to have "financial safety cushions in terms of liquidity and capital adequacy," Interfax quotes a government message.
In addition, market participants will be required to inform citizens about "increased risks associated with digital currencies," TASS adds.
Regulation is needed to integrate the mechanism for the circulation of digital currencies into the country's financial system, the government said. Another reason is the desire to ensure "cash flow control".
In his letter, the Commerce official noted that "the implementation of the concept will allow us to bring the digital money industry out of the shadows and create the possibility for legal business activities."
Waiting for the concept:
what was it?
The fact that the government had prepared a roadmap for the regulation of cryptocurrencies and opposed their ban in Russia was reported by RBC on January 28. According to him, it was signed by Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko, representatives of the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Economic Development, the Prosecutor General's Office, Rosfinmonitoring, the Federal Security Service, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Federal Tax Service, the Ministry of Digital Development and the Central Bank participated in the preparation of the document.
The participants analyzed the international experience and came to a consensus: the cryptocurrency market infrastructure has advantages and some risks, so it is recommended to implement the concept of a regulatory and restrictive regime rather than a complete ban,” the source said.
Participants analyzed international experience and developed a consensus: the infrastructure of the crypto market contains advantages and certain risks, therefore it is advisable to implement the concept of a regulatory and restrictive regime, rather than a complete ban," the source said.
The document, written RBC, provides for the development of mechanisms for registering and reporting organizations through which the circulation of virtual assets in Russia passes, determining responsibility for crimes using cryptocurrencies, and creating a mechanism for verifying the accuracy of the information provided on the ownership of digital currencies.
What did the Ministry of Finance propose?
In the concept of the Ministry of Finance, as RBC reported, it was proposed to carry out all operations with cryptocurrencies through Russian banks, identify holders of crypto wallets and divide customers into qualified and unqualified investors.
The concept assumes that individuals and legal entities will be able to conduct transactions with cryptocurrencies: for this, they will need to go through a simplified or full identification and open an electronic wallet in a bank.
The Ministry of Finance proposes to create a procedure for the complete identification of customers on the model of the Swiss project Aximetria, which collects a detailed database of personal data of citizens, including passport data, bank account number, and card number, which is used to purchase virtual assets.
According to the concept of the Ministry of Finance, foreign exchanges of digital currencies will also be able to operate on the Russian market, but for this, they will need to open a representative office in Russia and carry out technical integration with Russian banks.
The department proposes to distribute supervisory functions between the Central Bank, the Ministry of Finance, Rosfinmonitoring, the Federal Tax Service, the Ministry of Digital Development, and the Prosecutor General's Office. To control and track transactions with cryptocurrencies, it is proposed to use the Transparent Blockchain service developed by Rosfinmonitoring.
Earlier, the head of the financial policy department of the Ministry of Finance, Ivan Chebeskov, spoke about the development of the concept. “In my opinion, it is necessary to regulate, not ban. Regulation will just ensure the transparency that will ensure the protection of citizens,” Chebeskov said at a conference on cryptocurrencies.
Why the Central Bank is against cryptocurrencies
On January 20, the Central Bank of Russia published a report on cryptocurrency regulation plans in Russia.
The document proposes at the legislative level to prohibit the use of the infrastructure of the Russian financial market for any operations with cryptocurrencies, as well as to prohibit financial organizations from investing in cryptocurrencies and related instruments.
According to the proposals of the Central Bank, it is necessary to completely ban the issuance, mining, and circulation of cryptocurrencies, as well as introduce liability for Russian individuals and legal entities for violating the ban on the use of cryptocurrencies as a means of payment.
The regulator believes that this is necessary to "reduce the threats caused by the spread of cryptocurrencies." The current scale and further spread of cryptocurrency mining in Russia carry significant risks for the economy and financial stability," the report says.
At the same time, the regulator noted that it was not going to prohibit Russians from owning cryptocurrencies.
“We do not propose to introduce a ban on the possession of cryptocurrencies by citizens.
This, of course, can be done in foreign jurisdictions,” Elizaveta Danilova, director of the Central Bank’s financial stability department, explained to reporters.
The Bloomberg agency wrote that the FSB allegedly proposed the idea of completely banning operations with cryptocurrencies to the head of the Central Bank, Elvira Nabiullina.
What about Putin?
Bloomberg wrote, citing his sources, that the Russian president rejected the idea of the Bank of Russia to completely ban cryptocurrencies, supporting the Finance Ministry's proposal to tax and regulate their mining. Putin's press secretary, Dmitry Peskov, said that this was not true: "No. Such proposals have not yet been formulated at all."On January 26, Putin suggested that the Central Bank and the Ministry of Finance quickly end the dispute over cryptocurrencies. “I asked the Russian government and the Central Bank to come to some kind of consensus during the discussions. And I would ask you to hold this discussion soon, then report on the results that will be achieved during this discussion,” he said at the meeting with the government.
At the same time, Putin also spoke out in defense of the position of the Central Bank, noting that the regulator in this dispute "does not stand in our way of technical progress and is making the necessary efforts to introduce the latest technologies in this area ofactivity." According to Putin, Russia has certain competitive advantages over other countries in cryptocurrency mining due to a surplus of electricity and well-trained personnel.
ALEXANDER RYUMIN/TASS
"A group of enthusiasts, but at the same time, quite balanced people are preparing a draft law, which should soon be submitted to the committee. We will send it to express our point of view, both to the Central Bank and to the [Finance] Ministry" Aksakov said.
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