A national ban on the use of digital assets for payments was today signed into law by Russian President Vladimir Putin. After much discussion on how to handle cryptocurrencies, the Russian government and central bank finally took action.
The Bank of Russia recommended a complete ban on cryptocurrency—for payments or investments—back in January. The law of today doesn't really go that far. Similar to the bill passed today, the Russian Finance Ministry proposed cryptocurrency restrictions in February that permit investing in digital assets like Bitcoin or Ethereum but forbid using them to make purchases.
The law's English translation from the Russian Parliament website is as follows:
"Except as otherwise provided by federal laws, it is prohibited to transfer or accept digital financial assets as consideration for transferred goods, performed works, or rendered services, or in any other manner that permits one to assume payment for goods (works, services), by a digital financial asset."
Since it invaded Ukraine, Russia has been a hot topic in the cryptocurrency world. As a result, major cryptocurrency firms like Binance and Coinbase declared that they will abide by rules barring Russians' access to exchanges in the U.S. or the E.U.
Russia's cryptocurrency laws are convoluted: the central bank of the nation had previously advocated for a ban on Bitcoin mining and cryptocurrency transactions, but early this year, the country's Finance Ministry declared that it would be "essential to allow" cryptocurrency technology to advance.
In January, when discussing Russia's "certain competitive advantages," including a "surplus of electricity and well-trained professionals available in the country," President Putin voiced enthusiasm for mining Bitcoin.
According to data from CoinMarketCap, Bitcoin ends the week down nearly 5% to $20,790.64 and Ethereum is holding at $1,231.54, down less than 1% over the past 7 days.
.jpg)
0 Comments