Russia to Treat Bitcoin as Foreign Currency and Enable Trading

By July 19, 2016Bitcoin Business

Nearly a week after the proposal of Party of Growth—a political party in Russia which represents the liberal free market economy—to legalize bitcoin, the Russian Ministry of Finance and the country’s lawmakers are set to treat cryptocurrencies including bitcoin as a foreign currency.

Deputy Finance Minister Alexei Moiseev, who featured in an interview hosted by the Russian Newspaper, stated that while cryptocurrency-based business operations are still illegal in Russia, the Ministry of Finance is currently developing a set of regulations to enable purchasing and selling of Bitcoin.

Moiseev said: "Yes, it’s impossible to issue foreign currency in Russia. But you can buy foreign currency, put it in your pocket and go abroad. Therefore, we are currently working on precise definitions in the bill, so that it will be possible to buy or sell bitcoins.” Alexei Moiseev, Deputy Finance Minister However, Minister Moiseev clarified that cryptocurrency mining is illegal in the country because it goes against the country’s constitution which states that Ruble is the only currency accepted by the country.

"According to the constitution, the only currency in the country is the ruble. Its sole issuer is the Bank of Russia. Thus, the issue of any other currency is illegal,” he added .

The highly anticipated statement of the Ministry of Finance is suspected to spur the growth of Bitcoin in Russia significantly. According to Boris Titov, the Presidential Commissioner for Entrepreneurs’ Rights in Russia and the Leader of Right Cause party, Russian agencies estimate that there around two million bitcoin wallets held or opened by Russian users.

“We [Party of Growth] estimate that over 2 million Russian citizens have opened their own Bitcoin wallets,” said Titov in an interview with TASS Russian news agency. Bitcoin Made Legal While Mainstream Payment Networks Threatened

While some positivity in the Russian Bitcoin industry brightened the […]

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