Moscow’s main government agencies, the Central Bank and the Finance Ministry, have aligned their positions on the regulation of cryptocurrency mining in the Russian Federation. The respective bills will soon be submitted to the State Duma, a high-ranking member of the chamber revealed.
Financial Authorities Reach Agreement on How to Regulate Digital Coin Mining in Russia
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The Central Bank of Russia (CBR) and the Ministry of Finance (Minfin) have adopted a joint position on the regulation of crypto mining. Bitcoin-related activities have been expanding in the energy-rich country as a profitable industry and a source of additional income for many Russians.
Anatoly Aksakov, chairman of the parliamentary Financial Markets Committee, announced at the Kazan Digital Week forum that a bill introducing rules for the sector will soon be submitted to the State Duma, the lower house of the Russian parliament.RBC Quoting from Crypto, he said.
In the near future the bill will appear in the State Duma, we will work to pass it faster.
The Russian legislator also offered his own views on the issue. Aksakov believes that cryptocurrency mining should only be allowed in areas where energy resources are abundant and banned in areas where they are scarce.
In early September, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishtin asked the CBR, Minfin, Rosfinmonitoring, Russia’s financial watchdog, the Federal Tax Service, and the Federal Security Service to draft a federal law regulating the issuance and distribution of digital currencies, their mining and use in international payments We have asked them to elaborate a common position.
The head of the Russian government also ordered the Ministry of Finance, with the participation of the Bank of Russia, to submit by December 1 a draft agreement on the development of the market for digital financial assets (DFA), including the application of decentralized technologies.
Both regulators need to update the “Strategy for the Development of the Russian Financial Market until 2030”. The document needs to be revised in light of President Putin’s instructions and the current geopolitical situation, Mishustin said on September 13. He also stressed that under the current circumstances, the adoption of the foreign exchange special session will contribute to uninterrupted settlement of imports and exports.
Russian authorities have been debating the regulation of cryptocurrencies and related activities for quite some time, with the CBR and Minfin taking a largely opposing position until recently. The central bank has proposed a total ban, while the bureau has been in favor of legalization. However, the two regulators recently agreed that Russia needs cross-border crypto payments to deal with the pressure exerted by Western restrictions on its foreign trade.
Most Moscow officials also share the view that the Russian Federation should leverage its competitive advantages in the field of crypto mining, a view that the Russian president has also emphasized. With its vast land area, many regions of Russia offer both low-cost energy and a cool climate. At the same time, Russian crypto miners have been hit by sanctions imposed in response to Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
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