Russia Could Pass Cryptocurrency Law This Year, Senior Lawmaker Says

An official for Russia’s national legislature believes that new laws regulating the exchange of cryptocurrencies will be complete by the end of the fall.

Anatoly Aksakov, who leads the State Duma’s financial markets committee, told Russian media this week that next steps involve the formation of a dedicated working group to address the issue. Further, he said that he would be meeting with officials from Russia’s central bank and the Ministry of Finance in the coming days.

Should all the pieces come together – Russian officials have been working on some kind of law related to the tech since as early as 2014 – lawmakers could complete work on a legislative passage over the next several months, according to Aksakov.

He said (in translated comments):

“If we agree on the main approaches in the coming week, I think that by autumn, by the end of the fall session, we will be able to adopt this law in order to provide a legal space for the development of this market.”

The comments come amid a flurry of news out of Russia on the cryptocurrency front. The country’s deputy finance minister, for example, said earlier this week that he thinks bitcoin trading should be restricted to qualified investors. The chief internet advisor to president Vladimir Putin, meanwhile, unveiled the formation of a new blockchain and cryptocurrency advocacy group earlier this week.

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