​Russia to launch the first CEIF for investment in mining equipment

What’s new? A closed-end investment fund (CEIF) with a focus on cryptocurrency mining companies may appear on the Russian financial market. According to Kommersant, the idea belongs to the investment holding Finam, which plans to raise about 500 million Russian rubles (RUB) to create the fund and establish OOO (a limited liability company under the laws of the Russian Federation). Through this organization, mining equipment will be purchased and then leased, the cost of which will be tied to the bitcoin exchange rate.

Kommersant’s material

Details about the launch of the fund. According to the holding’s Chairman Mgmt Board Vladislav Kochetkov, part of the funds raised will be used to purchase the mining rigs, while the remaining money will be reserved to pay for electricity and maintenance of the fund.

Access to the fund will be open only to qualified investors, and the minimum entry threshold will be 300 000 RUB. Finam will submit the rules of its operation to a special depositary for approval after March 1. Kochetkov noted that CEIF already has its first tenant, a hosting company for mining.

If the initiative receives regulatory approval, Finam’s CEIF will be the first of its kind on the Russian market. Previously, management companies BCS and “Pervaya” created only mutual funds with a focus on blockchain companies, and the inclusion of foreign cryptocurrencies in mutual funds was banned by the Bank of Russia back in 2021. Industry representatives believe that the regulator may have eased its attitude to mining over the years, and the launch of the new fund may be approved.

Alexander Baryshnikov, head of digital project development at BitRiver, noted an explosive growth in interest in industrial mining. And according to Artem Mayorov, Asset Management Department Director at Ingosstrakh Investment Asset Management, the profitability of mining at the current rate of BTC may reach 50% per annum. He added that the company will launch a similar product if the fund from Finam gets approval from the Central Bank.

Earlier, deputy Anatoly Aksakov said that Russia may impose liability for miners who mine cryptocurrency illegally. The relevant draft law is planned to be adopted in the first half of 2023.

For how the mining industry works in Russia, as well asattempts to regulate cryptocurrencies in the country, read GetBlock Magazine’s special materials.