Russian ministry proposes to amend law banning crypto transactions

Published at: Sept. 3, 2020

Authorities in Russia continue the game of ping pong in regulating cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) even after passing the country’s first crypto law.

Russia’s Ministry of Finance has reportedly proposed a set of amendments to the law “On Digital Financial Assets,” or DFA, which bans many operations with crypto.

According to local news agency Izvestia, the proposed amendments envision a “blanket ban on any operations with virtual money for individuals and individual entrepreneurs” except for three scenarios. The ministry reportedly wants to ban all crypto transactions except the obtaining of assets through inheritance, bankruptcy and enforcement proceedings.

The amendments reportedly intend to prohibit miners from receiving payment for cryptocurrency mining. “Standalone crypto mining is legal, but it loses its financial value because the payment is usually processed in Bitcoins and Ethers,” Izvestia reports.

The latest news brings even more confusion to Russia’s current legal situation with crypto. After Russia finally passed its DFA bill in July 2020, local authorities subsequently said that the regulation will be set out in another law referred to as the bill “On Digital Currency,” or DA. While the DA bill is expected to pass in late 2020, the DFA law is scheduled to be adopted in January 2021, banning crypto-denominated payments in Russia.

In late August 2020, Russia’s telecom regulator Roskomnadzor blocked the country’s largest crypto-related website, BestChange.ru. Providing an aggregator of about 400 local crypto exchange websites, the platform was reportedly said to distribute information about buying or selling products with cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. BestChange claims to have never provided any information about such services.

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