Bank of Russia Allows Sberbank to Issue Digital Financial Assets – Sberbank, Russia’s largest bank, has been added to the Central Bank of Russia’s (CBR) list of information system operators authorized to issue digital financial assets (DFAs). In the country’s present legislation, the term is being used to describe several forms of cryptocurrencies.
The commercial bank confirmed the news on Thursday and elaborated:
Accounting and distribution of DFAs issued on the Sber digital asset platform would take place in an information system built on a distributed ledger based on blockchain technology, ensuring data security and the impossibility of information replacement.
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Other legal entities will be permitted to issue their own digital assets guaranteeing monetary claims to attract investors, according to the majority state-owned banking and financial services company.
Businesses will also be able to purchase DFAs issued on Sberbank’s platform and transact with them in accordance with applicable legislation.
The law “On Digital Financial Assets,” which took effect in January 2021, regulated a number of crypto-related activities, including the issuance of digital coins and token-based fundraising. It did not, however, establish laws for other critical processes using cryptocurrencies, including as trading, mining, and circulation in the Russian economy.
A working group in the State Duma, parliament’s lower house, has been formulating recommendations to address the regulatory gaps. The Ministry of Finance published a new draft law titled “On Digital Currency” in February, with the goal of legalizing crypto investments while also enforcing a ban on the use of cryptocurrencies for payments in Russia.
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Concerns have been voiced in the West that the Russian government and sanctioned persons may resort to crypto assets as a means to escape the limitations imposed in the aftermath of the invasion of Ukraine, notably in the financial realm.
Russia’s intent in using digital currencies to reclaim its access to global banking has been reinforced by recent statements made by a member of the regulatory working group in Moscow.
