Report: Russian State Duma to Review Crypto Regulation, Oil-Backed Crypto in Development

The Russian State Duma (the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia) plans to review and adopt new cryptocurrency regulation in March.  The former Energy Minister Igor Yusufov is also proposing an oil-backed crypto, Russian financial outlet Rambler reported on Feb. 21.

Furthermore, Rambler reports that the head of the Energia investment-oriented corporation, former Energy Minister Igor Yusufov, also has tangible prospects for proposing an oil-backed cryptocurrency. The construction of the project’s roadmap is reportedly almost at the final stage.

In an interview with Rambler, Yusufov reportedly said that the introduction of a crypto settlement system on the energy market could allow for the avoidance of costs associated with the use of not-backed-up currencies and the fluctuations of their exchange rates. He also cites savings on currency exchange commissions and trade restrictions as other examples of advantages that the proposed system could bring.

The article also that underlines counties member of the informal Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries + (OPEC+), including Russia, would benefit the most from such a system. The reason provided is that the cryptocurrency platform would permit them to circumnavigate financial and trade restrictions.

Moreover, Yusufov is also quoted as explaining that the blockchain would also be used to track and verify every barrel of oil alongside the entire chain, without any additional costs. The former head of the Federal Securities Commission of Russia, Igor Kostikov, reportedly commented on the idea, suggesting that not only oil and gas could be connected to it, but any exchangeable resource. He concluded:

“Perhaps the oil-backed cryptocurrency will be the pioneering project that will create a reliable structure for the cryptographic market as a whole.”

The idea of a state-issued oil-backed cryptocurrency closely resembles the Petro, an oil-backed crypto first announced by Nicola Maduro, the president of Venezuela, in 2017 and launched in February last year. However, the oil-backed coin has thus far failed to materialize.

As Cointelegraph reported at the end of January, the chairman of the upper house of the Russian parliament has urged MPs to expedite their work on digital economy bills that include a draft on crypto regulation.