Legal or illegal? Bank of Russia officials undecided over Bitcoin status

Maria Nikolova

Department director at Russia’s c-bank says the regulator never actually pushed for banning crypto-currencies.

Confusion has been mounting over the status of Bitcoin and other crypto-currencies in Russia after a number of officials from the Central Bank of Russia and the nation’s government have made contradictory statements on the matter over the past few days.

A week ago, Deputy Finance Minister Alexey Moiseev said Russia is looking to recognize crypto-currencies as legal in 2018, but soon after that Maxim Grigoriev, Chief of the Centre for Financial Technologies at the Bank of Russia, noted that it was too early to talk of legalization of crypto-currencies in Russia.

The diversity of opinions has just grown, as another senior official at Russia’s central bank – Vadim Kalukhov, has added his voice to the chorus of opinions and, more importantly, has offered his interpretation of the official stance of the Bank of Russia regarding crypto-currencies.

A short reminder: back in 2014, Russia’s “Megaregulator” published a statement concerning the growing popularity of crypto-currencies like Bitcoin. The central bank referred to Article 27 of the law “On the Central Bank of the Russian Federation”, which prohibits the issue of money surrogates in the Russian Federation. Also, the Bank of Russia stated that the provision of crypto-currency exchange services by business entities will be considered as involvement in suspicious activities. These actions are treated as violations of the laws on anti-money laundering and terrorism funding, the bank said back then.

Mr Kalukhov, who is Director of the Financial Technology, Projects and Process Management Department at the Central Bank of Russia, has a particular view on the regulatory statement. He insists that the famous statement by the Bank of Russia was just a warning and that the regulator never pushed for banning crypto-currencies.

This is a very peculiar interpretation. For starters, the Bank of Russia referred to Bitcoin and other crypto-currencies as money surrogates. The law prohibits the issue and use of money surrogates in Russia. That is why, since 2014, the position of the Bank of Russia regarding crypto-currencies was considered to be absolutely negative.

This harsh opposition has indeed softened over the past year or so. The Ministry of Finance has put on hold its plans to introduce tough penalties for Bitcoin-related activities in Russia. In fact, the Ministry is expected to file a report on Bitcoin regulation with the government this summer. The document will treat crypto-currencies as financial instruments.

Read this next

Digital Assets

Embarking on a Digital Currency Journey

Imagine you’ve stumbled upon a treasure map, leading you to untold riches hidden in the vastness of the internet. Instead of gold coins and jewel-encrusted goblets, this treasure comes in the form of digital currencies, the modern-day loot coveted by many.

Reviews

Traders Union Experts Share The Trading Analyst Review For 2024

Navigating options trading in rapidly shifting markets poses a considerable challenge. This is where options trading alert services become invaluable. They aid traders in keeping abreast of evolving opportunities and market trends. In this assessment, Traders Union experts scrutinize The Trading Analyst alert service to ascertain its efficacy. 

Digital Assets

BlockDAG’s Presale Achieves $9.9M: Aiming For A 5000-Fold ROI As Cardano’s Price Rises And Fantom Launches Sonic

Explore Cardano’s surge, Sonic’s efficiency, and why BlockDAG’s growth makes it the top crypto choice. A deep dive into the future of blockchain investments.

Digital Assets

US, UK probe $20 billion Tether transfers tied to Russian exchange.

U.S. and UK authorities are investigating the movement of $20 billion in the USD-pegged stablecoin tether (USDT) through Moscow-based exchange Garantex.

Digital Assets

BlockDAG Presale Raises $9.9M as Batch 5 Nears Sell-Out Amid Bonk’s Fluctuating Trading Volume & Spell’s Bullish Price

Explore BONK’s trading volume, SPELL’s market shifts, and why BlockDAG’s 10,000 ROI makes it an ideal crypto for savvy investors in 2024.

Digital Assets

Bybit expands into Europe amid regulatory scrutiny

Dubai-based cryptocurrency exchange Bybit is expanding its operations in Europe after encountering regulatory challenges in Hong Kong.

Digital Assets

Cathie Wood’s sponsored Bitcoin ETF sees historic $200 million inflows

The ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB), co-sponsored by Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest, registered historic inflows exceeding $200 million on Wednesday, signaling a robust appetite among investors for Bitcoin-centric investments.

Digital Assets

Sam Bankman-Fried might see his 25-year sentence halved

Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of the failed cryptocurrency exchange FTX, was sentenced to 25 years in federal prison by a Manhattan court on Thursday. This comes after he was convicted of defrauding customers and investors, with Judge Lewis Kaplan highlighting the potential future risks posed by Bankman-Fried.

Technical Analysis

EURJPY Technical Analysis Report 28 March, 2024

EURJPY currency pair under the bearish pressure after the pair reversed down from the major resistance level 164.25, which also stopped the sharp weekly uptrend at the end of last year,

<