Bank of Russia to Test International Crypto Payments With Companies – Olga Skorobogatova, the monetary authority’s First Deputy Chairman, made the announcement on Monday that the Central Bank of the Russian Federation (CBR) plans to test out the use of cryptocurrencies in the process of settling international trade transactions.
“We are now planning, within the framework of the experimental legal regime that we are preparing, to try the use of cryptocurrency for international settlements, that is, for foreign economic activity,” she said, quoted by the Tass news agency. Skorobogatova provided more information about how the pilot project will be carried out with interested companies while she was speaking at the State Duma, which is the lower house of the Russian parliament. Nevertheless, she did not offer any specific names of the market participants who will take part in it.
People Also Read: Indian Government Updates Parliament on Cryptocurrency Bill and Investigations of Crypto Exchanges
Moscow’s governmental agencies have been hard at work on an expansion of the regulatory framework for digital financial assets to include decentralized cryptocurrencies. The Russian central bank has been a strong opponent to the legalization of cryptocurrencies in the country, but it has recently begun to soften its stance in response to Western sanctions imposed in response to the invasion of Ukraine. These sanctions have limited Russia’s access to global financial markets and resources.
Alexey Moiseev, Russia’s Deputy Minister of Finance, disclosed in September that his department and the monetary policy regulator have come to the conclusion that it would be impossible for Russia to function effectively without the ability to make cross-border settlements in cryptocurrency given the current state of affairs.
Despite this, the CBR has not changed its stance, which is that it is opposed to allowing the unrestricted circulation of digital currencies like bitcoin within Russian jurisdiction, which includes the use of cryptocurrency for domestic payments. It recently gave its support to legislation that would regulate mining, on the condition that any newly mined cryptocurrency would be exchanged outside of Russia or solely in accordance with specific legal regimes within the country.
READ MORE
Binance US Plans to Acquire Voyager Digital’s Assets for $1 Billion in Bankruptcy Bid
Bank of Russia Moves to Safeguard Crypto Companies Against Sanctions
