Russian upper house approves crypto law

Russia’s Federation Council has approved a bill that legalizes the mining of cryptocurrencies and allows the central bank to authorize selected businesses to carry out cross-border settlements and exchange trading in digital currency.

The legislation, which is still to be signed into law by President Vladimir Putin, allows legal entities and individual entrepreneurs approved by the Ministry of Digital Development Communications and Mass Media to conduct virtual currency mining.

The document also includes a ban on advertising cryptocurrencies and offering them to an unlimited number of people. The restriction would come into effect ten days after the law is published by the government.

The law also obliges crypto miners to provide information to the state-authorized body about digital currency obtained as a result of mining. The government will have the right to introduce a ban or restriction on transactions with digital currency to maintain Russia’s monetary stability. Most of the amendments regulating the mining process are expected to come into force on November 1.

The new legislation also approves a special experimental regime under which the central bank will be able to authorize selected companies to use cryptocurrency for international payments and in exchange trade. The measure is set to come into effect as soon as this month.

Cryptocurrencies are currently not legal for payments in Russia, which would fundamentally change under the new legislation. Bank of Russia chief Elvira Nabiullina previously said the regulator would conduct the first cross-border crypto payments by the end of the current year.