Russia plans to make cryptocurrency legal tender

Russia government is making move to legalise Bitcoins and said that it has reached a conclusion on how to handle cryptocurrencies. According to the Russian apex bank, Russia is drafting a law, expected by February 18, which will define crypto as an “analogue of currencies” rather than as digital financial assets. Russian newspaper, Kommersant, reported that the cryptocurrency space has shown resistance to government pushback. It will be recalled that Central Bank of Nigeria directed banks not to have anything to do with cryptocurrencies. Nigerians peer-to-peer transactions in cryptocurrency rose by 16 per cent on an annual basis, despite the crypto ban. Nigeria’s P2P volumes on two major P2P platforms (Paxful and Localbitcoins) currently stand at $400 million, followed by Kenya with more than $160 million and South Africa with $117 million.

In lieu of the growing adoption, Russia has sort to benefit and position itself to get profitable via the blockchain revolution. The report said that the circulation of crypto in the legal sector will be possible only with full identification, through the banking system or licensed intermediaries. The report said that operations in digital currency equivalent to more than 600 thousand rubles, about $8,000, must be declared. It further said that transactions outside the legal sector for such amounts will become a criminal offence and an aggravating circumstance under the Criminal Code. 

Fines it said will be introduced for the illegal acceptance of cryptocurrencies as a means of payment. This is coming on the heels after the Bank of Russia pushed for a blanket ban on crypto in a report issued in January, arguing that the speculative nature of the industry posed a significant threat to the financial stability of citizens. The final concept is mainly based on the positions of the Ministry of Finance. Until February 18, the ministry and the Bank of Russia must formulate either a separate bill or amendments to the law on the CFA and other laws for its implementation