Following speculation that Russia was planning to ban cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin (BTC), officials clarified the country's stance.
In particular, Member of Parliament and Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Information Policy, Information Technologies, and Communications, Anton Gorelkin, broke the silence by stating that the information had been misrepresented in the media.
Gorelkin, in a Telegram post dated April 27, highlighted that misleading reports stemmed from a draft law aimed at introducing mechanisms to identify criminal cryptocurrency transactions in the country.
He emphasized that the draft law aimed at regulating the field and not directly banning their circulation. The proposed legislation targets the organization of cryptocurrency exchanges and traders outside the scope of an experimental legal regime.
"It is surprising that even some reputable publications write that deputies want to ban the circulation of cryptocurrencies in Russia. The circulation of cryptocurrencies will not be banned. The ban is on organization. That is, it is about creating exchanges and exchanges outside the scope of the experimental legal regime."
Geopolitical Influence
Further elaborating on the geopolitical context, he suggested that the emergence of a legal Russian digital asset infrastructure is facing difficulties due to international sanctions.
"This is a situation that some actors insist on, and it highlights that today the issue of creating a legal Russian crypto infrastructure depends on geopolitical realities. Giving a green light to a business in this direction would mean forcing it into Western sanctions. It's a paradox, but the ban on regulating the circulation of digital currencies is more of a protective measure here."
Earlier reports had claimed that Russia planned to ban cryptocurrencies to increase the dominance of the local currency, the ruble. Indeed, this development caused a frenzy in the market. Many players pointed out that the ban could strengthen the current downward trend.
Indeed, following Russia's exposure to sanctions resulting from its invasion of Ukraine, cryptocurrencies were seen as an alternative. In this context, Russia continues to host many domestic and foreign cryptocurrency companies. Of course, a possible ban could impact this situation.