A member of the top management of the Central Bank of Russia revealed that it plans to use cryptocurrency in cross-border payments with private companies. A special legal framework is currently being developed to allow for testing.
According to Olga Skorobogatova, the First Deputy Chairman of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation (CBR), the Central Bank of the Russian Federation intends to test international trade settlements using cryptocurrencies.
“We are now planning, within the framework of the experimental legal regime that we are preparing, to try the use of cryptocurrency for international settlements, that is, for foreign economic activity,” she said, quoted by the Tass news agency.
Skorobogatova, speaking at the State Duma (the lower house of the Russian parliament), stated that the pilot project would be conducted with interested companies.
Skorobogatova did not name specific market participants participating in the pilot project. Moscow’s government institutions have been trying to improve the regulation of digital financial assets to include decentralized cryptocurrencies.
Although the central bank was a strong opponent of their legalization in Russia, it has changed its position amid Western restrictions on Ukraine’s invasion that have restricted the country’s access to global markets and finances.
Alexey Moiseev, Deputy Minister for Finance, revealed in September that Russia could not conduct cross-border cryptocurrency settlements without the monetary regulator.
The CBR, however, maintains its opposition to allowing digital currencies such as bitcoin to circulate freely under Russian jurisdiction.
This includes domestic crypto payments. Recent legislation supporting the regulation of mining was supported by the CBR, subject to restrictions on how the minted cryptocurrency is exchanged outside Russia or under specific legal regimes within Russia.
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