Probably, you may be familiar with the phrase “crypto is here to stay.” Despite the market downturn, which shackled the spirit of many crypto investors, and law authorities’ move to further tighten crypto regulations on the heels of FTX, global interactions with cryptocurrencies continue to rise. For example, Russia, which is known as an anti-crypto regime, has turned friendly with cryptocurrency with its new bill. 

On November 17, a new bill was introduced in the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia, also known as State Duma, which seeks to legalize the crypto mining operations and sale of mined cryptocurrency on overseas platforms.

Though cryptocurrencies are banned in the country, the bill, if passed, will allow the use of virtual currency for business settlements only under the experimental sales regime, which came into existence as a result of an innovation law passed in 2020.

Crypto-related activities in Russia have been challenging since the start. Mainly, the Bank of Russia never favored the inclusion of cryptocurrency in the state and expressed concerns over financial stability. Even it called for a total ban including trading, mining, and using virtual assets. In the turn of events, the central bank now also plans to include crypto assets as a cross-border financial instrument. 

The new bill prepared by a group of lawmakers along with the Chairman of Duma Financial Market Committee Anatoly Aksakov and Deputy Speaker Alexei Gordeyev elaborates mechanism in the document through which the sale of cryptocurrency will be made possible under the law. Since the implied law does not allow cryptocurrency settlements, it has been a critical issue in previous crypto bills voted down by MPAs. 

Russian Miners Could Sell Cryptos At Foreign Platforms

A rough translation of the bill reads;

Digital currency obtained as a result of mining can be disposed of by the person who carried out the mining of this digital currency on the condition that Russian information infrastructure is not used in conducting transactions with it, with the exception of cases of transactions carried out in accordance with the established experimental legal regime.

The proposed legislation allows miners to sell cryptocurrencies on foreign platforms by preventing the pain of currency regulation or under the tightened rules within Russia’s experimental sale regime. However, regardless of which option miners choose, all the transactions in both cases must be reported to Federal Tax Service. 

While speaking at a local press, Aksakov revealed he expects the bill to be approved in the three parliamentary readings by December, which will see the new rules in power by February of next year. As per other sources, the bill may also come into effect in January 2022.