In Russia, will introduce a sandbox mode for cryptocurrency and digital technologies

The Ministry of Economic Development of the Russian Federation presented the latest version of the draft law “On Experimental Legal Regimes in the Field of Digital Innovations in the Russian Federation”, or the “sandbox”.

The regulatory platform can “shelter” companies that are engaged in a variety of technologies, the use of which has not yet been reflected in Russian legislation. Formally, these are six spheres, although everything can be included in the notion “other”. There was a place in the "main list" and new financial technologies, cryptocurrency and blockchain .

The document that has appeared may be considered during the autumn session of the State Duma, although before that it must undergo an independent anti-corruption examination. Given that the bill on digital financial assets is frozen in the lower house of parliament, there is no certainty that the new bill will not suffer the same fate. Moreover, the Central Bank of the Russian Federation has its own draft law, which concentrates on financial activities for the sandbox, and the regulator may try to promote precisely his own document, especially since it is already under consideration in the State Duma.

Meanwhile, any “digital” law must still be reviewed by the Federation Council and in the Kremlin, the President of the Russian Federation, to be published and only after that can it be considered a valid legal document.

Meanwhile, the document, which has become known today, shows that, if adopted, the Russian government may receive an official explanation for why there is no regulation of digital financial assets at the current time.

The fact is that, for example, cryptocurrency purchase and sale transactions , in particular, Bitcoin, in accordance with the presented draft law, will have to be carried out within the framework of a regulatory platform for three years of existence, which, if there is a special legal regime, did not harm anyone not touched someone's interests.

Moreover, if the court makes a decision or imposes an administrative fine on the cryptocurrency trade operators within the sandbox, it will be excluded from it and the entire value of the experience that the organization had will be nullified.

But even if after three years it will be clear that buying and selling bitcoin does not harm anyone, the Russian government gets the opportunity to think another year to finally decide: to prohibit such transactions in the general regulatory field or to initiate amendments to existing legislation that opens the way for such operations.

Likewise, the very fate of all other aspects of the activities of organizations and individuals related to the blockchain and cryptocurrencies can be determined rather immaturely.

Publication date 07/16/2019
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