Russia’s State Duma approved bill to ban buying goods for digital assets

The law restricts the acceptance or transfer of DFAs as payment to prevent their use as a monetary surrogate

14.06.2022 - 14:20

1 min

What’s new? The State Duma of the Russian Federation has passed in the first reading a bill that introduces changes to the sphere of regulation of the circulation of digital financial assets (DFAs), including a direct ban on payments for goods and services with them. The document was prepared by Anatoly Aksakov, Chairman of the Committee on Financial Markets of the State Duma, to prevent the use of digital assets as a means of payment, RIA Novosti reports. To this end, the procedure for making payments for transactions that were made with financial and investment platforms, as well as information systems in which DFAs are issued, is being optimized.

Information on the RIA Novosti website

What does the draft say? Special conditions have been drafted for operators of such platforms to carry out settlements on transactions using digital assets. One of the conditions provides for them to use nominal accounts, the beneficiaries of which are users of a certain electronic platform. The law also provides for a direct ban on the acceptance or transfer of DFAs as payment for goods, works, and services to prevent their use as a monetary surrogate.

In early June, Anton Gorelkin, Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Information Policy, Information Technologies and Communications, said that the Bank of Russia had eased its attitude toward the use of cryptocurrencies. He explained that the regulator now allows the use of digital assets in foreign trade and outside the country. According to him, this will bring closer the introduction of the relevant draft law to the State Duma.

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