Russia’s Central Bank Shifts Ground to Legalize Crypto Payment

The Central Bank of Russia together with the Ministry of Finance has had a rethink on the legalization of crypto.

Together they have decided that it is imminent to legalize cross-border payment with digital currencies. Alexei Moiseev, the Deputy Minister of Finance announced this during an interview with Russia-24 TV channel. 

The news comes just after Prime Minister Mikhail Vladimirovich Mishustin declared openly that crypto is a ‘safe alternative’ for international trade.

Initially, the concern had been the fact that the Russian Ruble is the only form of legal tender in the country. They had fears that if cryptocurrencies are finally accepted as a means of payment, they might end up displacing the Ruble.

Moiseev expressly said that “As for the regulation of the cryptocurrency market, the difference in approaches has remained. But I can say that the Central Bank has also rethought [the approach], taking into account the fact that the situation has changed, and we are rethinking it.”

Russia’s Legalization of Crypto is Inevitable

The Central Bank recognized as the Bank of Russia has agreed that the legalization of crypto is inevitable in the present geopolitical conditions. Moiseev stated that it is important to do this seeing that many Russians rely on foreign platforms to open a crypto wallet. 

Therefore, the process will start in earnest, involving various central bank-supervised entities that are in sync with anti-money laundering (AML)/and know-your-customer (KYC) requirements. The use of Bitcoin (BTC) and many other digital coins as a form of payment was first disrupted in 2020 when the country adopted a new crypto law “on Digital Financial Assets.”

When the issue of crypto legalization came up again In 2021, president Vladimir Putin argued that it was not yet time. Expressively President Vladimir Putin noted that the use of crypto for trades like oil and gas is “still premature.”

Interestingly, the Russian Minister of Industry and Trade Denis Manturov projected sometime in May that Russia will sooner or later legalize crypto payments. 

Although the Bank of Russia had been making plans to develop its central bank digital currency (CBDC). From the extent of the CBDC deployment, it is envisaged that the digital currency will finally be launched in 2024.