According to local media reports, Russia is likely to recognise cryptocurrency as a form of legal currency. It said that the country's central bank and the government have arrived at an agreement for the regulation of virtual asset.
Russian newspaper Kommersant said that by February 18, the government will come up with a draft legislation that will be aimed at recognising crypto as "analogue of currencies”.
The report comes barely a month after the Bank of Russia, the central bank, called for a blanket ban on crypto-related operations citing their potential "destabilising effect" on the country's finances. In what appears to be a policy reversal, the Bank of Russia has reached a consensus with the government "on a future regime for the circulation of cryptocurrencies in Russia", the Kommersant report said.
"Before February 18, they will prepare a draft law on the circulation of digital currencies in the Russian Federation, in which cryptocurrencies are recognised as an analogue of currencies, and not digital financial assets," CNBC TV18 quoted the Russian media outlet as stating.
However, crypto transactions of only up to 600,000 rubles (roughly $8,000) would be permitted after the changes in the law are brought into effect, the media report said while citing a Russian government document. For amounts exceeding the 600,000 rubles limit, fines would be imposed, they said.
It is likely that the new regulation that legalises cryptocurrencies will be implemented in the second half of 2022, or from the start of 2023, they added.
