Russian Duma receives 18 applications for blockchain research
A contract will be signed with the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation, which got the top rank among all applicants.
A followup to FinanceFeeds’ earlier report about the Russian parliament allocating RUB 2.5 million for blockhain, cryptocurrencies, ICO research…
On Wednesday, October 18, 2017, the Russian State Duma published some details about the applicants. A total of 18 applications were received with the funding required for the projects starting from a meager RUB 1. That was the offer made by a Russian law firm.
The applicant that got the highest score and will get a contract with the Russian Parliament is the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation. Its project requires funding of approximately RUB 1.88 million.
When the Duma invited the applications about a month ago, it noted the rapid evolution of the new financial technologies and emphasized the need to adapt them to the Russian market in a way that protects them from being destroyed by rules that are too harsh. However, the anonymity that goes along with many of the new technologies brings risks, such as the ability to finance terrorist activities, and the market has to be safeguarded from them.
In September this year, the Bank of Russia said it was monitoring the cryptocurrency markets and is exploring ways to regulate the segment. The “Megaregulator” reiterated its critical stance about the use of cryptocurrencies and ICOs, stressing the risks they bear and that investors in cryptocurrencies are not protected, as the industry is not regulated at this point.
Earlier this month, Sergey Shvetsov, First Deputy Governor of the Bank of Russia, said that the central bank and the prosecutors are working together to close the foreign websites that offer Russian residents to buy cryptocurrencies.
Mr Shvetsov added that all derivative instruments related to cryptocurrencies are seen as negative phenomena by the “Megaregulator”. The central bank is not supporting these instruments and will implement measures to limit all operations with them for the regulated part of the Russian market. He reiterated that these instruments bring very high risks for the Russian citizens and businesses. Moreover, he stresses, Bitcoin has become a means for getting artificially high returns for a very short period of time, something that is characteristic of financial pyramids.
