‘Crypto legislation coming in April’

Russian lawmakers say long-awaited crypto legislation will be ready for debate in parliament next month – although critics have raised concerns.

Per Finam, Anatoly Aksakov, head of the State Duma Committee on Financial Markets, stated that the “regulation of cryptocurrencies” would be “adopted in April.”

Aksakov is the chief architect of the law, which has been in the pipeline for several years. Major divisions between law enforcement agencies and the central bank on the one hand, and most major ministries on the other, have seen the bill stuck at the committee stage.

But the media said Aksakov expressed optimism during the Russian Financial Markets Forum this week.

The MP stated:

“Digital currencies and cryptocurrencies are not yet regulated. A bill was introduced, but it stalled […]. I think we will do it in April […] review [an updated bill] quickly. Measures related to liability, including penalties for illegal cryptocurrency operations, have already been agreed.”

Aksakov stated that it was “natural” that crypto “should” be banned as a payment tool in the “domestic market.”

But he suggested that Russians and Russian companies may be allowed to use crypto to pay on foreign platforms. MP said:

“[Crypto] can be used […] outside our legal space – that’s the approach we take.”

Russian Crypto Legislation – Critics Speak Out

Many critics have expressed concern about the new bill, which would reportedly seek to punish illegal crypto exchanges and brokers with prison terms.

Per Govorit Moscow, Sergei Shvetsov, the former deputy governor of the central bank, argued this week that such measures were draconian. He likened them to measures taken to stamp out black market foreign currency trading in the days of the Soviet Union.

Shvetsov believed that crypto-criminals should not face “criminal liability” and said:

“Why should criminal liability be enforced here? We remember what happened below [Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev] when residents were shot for selling $20. We definitely don’t need to go there. This is not what we want to see.”

Earlier this week, Aksakov stated that Bitcoin (BTC) had “no future” and instead backed ruble and commodity-backed coins to take off in the digital space. He claimed that such coins would be launched later this year, as well as in 2024.

It remains to be seen whether the bill that Aksakov spoke about at the forum will also contain widely recognized regulations for cryptomining – or whether mining will be dealt with in a separate bill.