Russia’s Central Bank to ban crypto while its Finance Ministry wants to regulate it.
Russia’s Central Bank to ban crypto while its Finance Ministry wants to regulate it.
Earlier reports said Russia’s central bank wanted a complete ban on the country’s cryptocurrency industry. In addition to calling the sector a pyramid scheme, the apex bank said digital assets threaten the financial stability and monetary policy of the nation.
The Bank of Russia has also touched on cryptocurrency mining, arguing that such an energy-intensive operation is contrary to the Russian green agenda. Interestingly, crypto mining operations are growing significantly in the country, making it the third-largest mining area in the world.
Ivan Chebeskov, who works in the Ministry of Finance as Director of Financial Policy, opposes the ban on crypto-currency. He says the ministry had its views on how to regulate the crypto market and reminded the central bank that the power to create legislation was with parliament. According to the official, regulation of the industry is the best move.
The Ministry of Finance has proposed a regulatory framework that will enable cryptocurrency transactions to be conducted through the Russian banking system; this framework will also enable identifying and monitoring of traders.
Russia has been fighting against crypto-assets for years, saying it can be used to extort money or finance terrorism. It eventually granted them official status in 2020 but banned their use as a means of payment.
“The world is so advanced and I don’t think we can allow ourselves to take over the high-tech industry and block it,” Chebeskov said at a RBC daily crypto asset business conference. He added, “We do not want this technology to leave the country, it has to be fully developed in the country,”.
Andrei Lugovoy, a pro-Kremlin lawyer, who heads the State Duma working group on crypto, said the ban on cryptocurrencies was only the central bank’s initiative alone. He also said, “There are no restrictions on our proposed amendments – it is not up to the central bank to decide what to allow and what to ban.”
Crypto Mining Gets Putin’s Nod
While the central bank continues to maintain a strong anti-crypto stance, Russian President Vladimir Putin in recent days has granted his endorsement to crypto-assets, particularly in the mining sector. As previously reported by the sources, Putin said Russia stands to gain “competitive advantages” by allowing crypto mining operations to continue.
Other government sources say Putin is committed to regulating crypto mines that will use the country’s excess electricity. Russia ranks third in the world in cryptocurrency mining behind the United States and Kazakhstan in terms of hash distribution.