A draft law legalizing cryptocurrency mining will be resubmitted to the Russian parliament postponing its adoption, one of its sponsors announced. Members of the lower house are also working on another bill that would introduce liability for those who illegally mint digital coins.
Adoption of Russian crypto mining legislation was again postponed
Legislation to legalize cryptocurrency mining was first submitted to theState Duma in November. According to Anton Gorelkin, deputy chairman of the parliament’s Information Policy Committee, the cryptocurrency mining legalization bill submitted to the State Dumain November will be resubmitted to the lower house of the Russian parliament after additional consultations.
The lawmaker explained that consideration of the regulations is a difficult process.” As a co-sponsor of the bill, I can confirm that it will be postponed. I hope we can implement it in some form this year,” Gorelkin elaborated, as quoted by crypto news outlet Forklog.
Russian lawmakers and other officials have been mulling over ways to regulate crypto-related businesses for more than a year. The law is intended to recognize mining as a legitimate business activity and require entities and individuals involved to report their income to tax authorities.
According to the draft, miners may sell their coins abroad or on platforms operating under a special Russian legal regime. Despite interest in the possibility of using cryptocurrencies for international payments amid sanctions, most government agencies in Moscow are still opposed to allowing crypto payments in the country.
Russian authorities want to introduce “gray” crypto miner liability
If approved in its current version, the law would also prohibit advertising or other forms of promoting crypto assets to an unrestricted audience. Russian lawmakers have already postponed its adoption once in December. The original plan was to vote on the law by the end of 2022.
In addition to being a profitable business, cryptocurrency extraction has become a popular source of income for many average Russians, especially in areas that maintain low subsidized electricity rates. However, this home mining has been blamed for breakdowns and fires, leading to a proposed ban in residential areas.
Last week, Anatoly Aksakov, head of the Duma’s Financial Markets Committee, said that lawmakers are currently preparing another bill that would introduce liability for so-called “gray miners,” or those who steal electricity for mining or illegally connect their hardware to the grid He clarified. The high-ranking deputy told RBC Crypto that both laws should be adopted simultaneously in the first half of this year.
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