Russian lawmakers deny possibility of state-owned cryptocurrency exchange development

Russian lawmakers chose not to proceed with plans to develop a state-owned crypto exchange.

According to a regional newspaper, Izvestia, Russian lawmakers have scrapped plans to put in place legislation that would allow the government to build a crypto platform.

Instead, the legislature chose to create a framework that would allow private institutions to launch cryptocurrency trading platforms under the supervision of the Russian Central Bank.

According to reports, private cryptocurrency exchanges will allow cross-border settlements and bypass some of the financial sanctions imposed on Russia by the United States and its European allies over its invasion of Ukraine last year.

The original plan was part of proposed amendments to Russia’s Digital Financial Assets Law, which is expected to be introduced in the second quarter of 2023.

Anatoly Aksakov, Chairman of the State Duma’s Committee on Financial Markets, predicted that by the end of 2023 the regulations on these exchanges will be developed, and they will be defined in a bill.

The move comes after Russia’s central bank reportedly rejected the lawmakers’ proposal.

The development of a national crypto exchange was announced in November 2022 after the collapse of FTX and Alameda.

Several members of the lower house of Russia’s parliament, the State Duma, have called on the government to recognize the existence and use of cryptocurrencies in the country and bring it under its control through a state-owned crypto platform.

Russia is losing billions in potential taxes

According to Sergey Altukhov, a Russian deputy, the cryptocurrency sector in Russia is worth billions of rubles. However, it exists primarily outside of state regulation, which means the government is missing out on hundreds of millions in potential tax income.

Altukhov shared similar sentiments in June 2022 when he proposed Russia introduce a cryptocurrency platform based on the Moscow Stock Exchange standards. He added that such a trading platform would only operate under the close supervision of the Russian Central Bank.

At the same time, lawmakers introduced a bill to legalize cryptocurrency mining and selling mined cryptocurrencies.