The report, “Cryptocurrencies: Trends, Risks, Measures”, was presented during an online press conference with Elizaveta Danilova, director of the Financial Stability Department of the Bank of Russia. The report states that cryptocurrencies are volatile and widely used in illegal activities such as fraud. By offering an outlet for people to move their money out of the national economy, they risk undermining it and making it more difficult for the regulator to maintain optimal monetary policies, the report said. The bank, therefore, suggests that Russia needs new laws and regulations that effectively ban any cryptocurrency-related activity in the country. In particular, the issuance of cryptocurrency and the organization of its circulation in Russia should be banned. The ban should apply to exchanges, over-the-counter trading desks and peer-to-peer platforms. An existing ban on the use of cryptocurrencies for payments should be strengthened and punishment introduced for the purchase or sale of goods, services and work by Russian individuals and businesses, the report suggests. Russian institutional investors should not be allowed to invest in crypto assets, and no Russian financial organization or infrastructure should be used for cryptocurrency transactions. The Bank of Russia has already banned mutual funds from investing in cryptocurrencies. Now, he is suggesting that a punishment be introduced for breaking this ban. Cryptocurrency mining, which has flourished in Russia in recent years and even gained some nods of approval from the country's parliament last year, has also come under fire.
The Bank of Russia calls for a total ban on cryptocurrencies