Key takeaways:
- Russia to allow for the use of the digital ruble by amending 13 laws and codes.
- Officials in Moscow feel this type of national legal money should be handled independently from other digital currencies (such as cryptocurrencies).
- To construct the digital ruble, at least eight federal laws and five codes โ the Civil, Tax, Budgetary, Criminal, and Administrative Codes โ must be changed, according to Anatoly Aksakov.
Earlier in October, Russian President Vladimir Putin signaled tolerance of cryptocurrencies, drawing increasing scrutiny from regulators worldwide amid fears they might be used for money laundering and criminal activity.
Cryptocurrency “has the right to exist and can be used as a means of payment,” Putin said in an interview with CNBC.
The Russian government is now preparing to alter critical pieces of legislation to make it easier to issue and use the digital ruble. Moscow officials believe that this version of the national fiat should be controlled independently from other digital currencies like cryptocurrencies. In January 2022, Russian legislators aim to begin work on permitted changes required to execute the digital ruble concept. The head of the legislative Financial Market Committee, Anatoly Aksakov, told the Russian daily Izvestia that these efforts would begin with introducing an experiment for the central financial institution digital foreign money (CBDC).
According to Aksakov, at least eight federal laws and five codes โ the Civil, Tax, Budgetary, Criminal, and Administrative Codes โ must be altered to establish the digital ruble. The new regulations will cover various topics, including the Bank of Russia’s authority to manage the new currency’s circulation, its authorization as a payment method, and legal protection for its holders, among others. In addition, Russia passed rules governing “digital financial assists” that took effect in January of this year. Nonetheless, Aksakov is pleased that members of the State Duma, the lower house of parliament, must distinguish amongst the ideals of digital currency, traditional currency, and those of stablecoins.
“Conventional cryptocurrencies, stablecoins, and the state digital foreign money should have their very own definitions which should be mirrored within the laws.”
The Bank of Russia (CBR), the country’s central bank, plans to start testing the digital ruble platform in January. However, the prototype must be completed by the end of the year, according to the CBDC idea, which was presented this spring.
According to the media source, the trial would be conducted in phases. The CBR will issue the digital money in the first step. The pilot project’s number of participants will be raised from the existing 12 banks in the future. The financial authority’s representatives went on to say:
“Based on the outcomes of this piloting, a roadmap for the introduction of the digital ruble shall be developed in addition to the mandatory amendments to the laws.”
In reaction to the growing popularity of cryptocurrencies and the decline in the usage of fiat, central banks worldwide have been looking into the possibility of issuing CBDCs. These include the European Central Bank and the Federal Reserve of the United States, and the Bank of Russia. However, with home testing currently underway and ambitions to test the digital yuan in cross-border transactions, the People’s Bank of China has perhaps the most superior project.
Earlier Russia had made pretty clear that it is not Going to Follow in the Footsteps of China. Further, this pilot program comes as good news for Russian crypto investors.