Russia introduced draft law on digital currencies

The Russian Ministry of Finance has sent a draft law for the regulation of digital currencies to the national government that aims to establish the legal bases for the cryptocurrency market and the rules for its circulation in the country. According to the Ministry, the bill was made according to the guidelines of the Russian government “on the basis of the approved concept of regulation of the mechanism of organization of the circulation of digital currencies.”

The text highlights that “the use of digital currencies as a means of payment in the Russian Federation would continue to be prohibited” and if the parliament approves the project, digital currencies will be used exclusively as an “investment instrument”.

Additionally, the Ministry of Finance stated that the prohibition made by the Central Bank of Russia, as well as the implementation of penalties, was not completely ruled out: “The proposals received by the Bank of Russia will be taken into account in future work on the project of law to the extent that they do not contradict the statements of the Russian Ministry of Finance.”

Creation of a regulatory body in Russia

The legislative project contemplates the requirements for digital asset exchange platforms and operators in general. The requirements include “reporting, storage of information, internal control and auditing, as well as the risk management system and the amount of own funds.”

In order to exercise and control these activities, the project contemplates the creation of a regulatory body, which will be determined by the government, in addition to creating a special registry of operators, highlighting that foreign cryptocurrency platforms must register in Russia to obtain a license.

In addition to requiring customers to “prior identification to carry out purchase and sale operations of digital currencies.” Clients will also be required to undergo a test before trading cryptocurrencies. Their level in said test will determine the amount they can invest in crypto.

Deposits and withdrawals will be made through financial institutions using a bank account, additionally the proposal indicates that “exchanges and banks must report directly to Rosfinmonitoring, the Russian Federal Financial Supervisory Service, of any suspicious transactions”.

On the other hand, the proposal also states that to protect investments, exchange platforms are obliged to inform you about the “high risks associated with the acquisition of digital currencies.”

M. Rodríguez

Source: diariobitcoin.com