At a press conference, a top Russian central bank official stated that the monetary authority will allow overseas crypto trade.
Ksenia Yudayeva, the Russian central bank’s first deputy governor, said Tuesday that the bank is open to utilizing cryptocurrency for foreign payments, according to Reuters and Russian media. She also said that the bank is revising its position on crypto mining. According to Yudaeva, she said:
“We’ve altered our minds about mining and now allow the usage of Bitcoin in international trade and outside the country,” says the statement.”
The bank official’s statement, which came in the middle of news regarding domestic bank regulation, appears to be a concession to legislators working on a new version of the “On Digital Currency” bill. The Finance Ministry introduced the draft bill at a meeting organized by the United Russia Party on Frida, according to business newspaper Vedomosti.
At that time, Anton Gorelkin, a member of the Russian parliament’s lower chamber, the State Duma, emphasized the need for the central bank to intervene. The draft has already taken into account the input of a number of governmental organizations and ministries.
The section allowing foreign cryptocurrency transactions is a new addition to the statute. According to Vedomosti, adding it to the current law was a matter of expediency, according to Economic Development Ministry official Anatoly Dyubanov, who spoke at the United Russia event.
The Russian central bank has previously been staunchly opposed to trade in cryptocurrency and even proposed banning crypto mining in January. Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed his opposition to the use of crypto for oil trading in October, saying “It’s too early to talk about it.” Since the imposition of new sanctions on the Russian Federation in connection with its invasion of Ukraine, support for cryptocurrency has grown within the government.
Russia’s motivation for growing bitcoin use globally is unclear, given the use of digital assets has no bearing on the terms of the country’s sanctions or the risks that sanction breakers face.
