Russian Financial Regulators Explore Cross-Border Crypto Payments

Russian authorities are working on a way to use cryptocurrencies for settlements with other nations amid the sanctions related to the Russia-Ukraine war.

The country’s central bank and finance ministry have agreed on a draft law to regulate cross-border crypto payments, Bitcoin.com reported Sunday (Sept. 25). The authorities will regulate the issuance, circulation and various operations with digital assets by the end of the year, including international crypto payments.

Deputy Minister of Finance Alexey Moiseev said his department and the Bank of Russia had agreed on new legislation. Earlier this month, the two institutions said Russia “can’t do without cross-border crypto payments” because of the sanctions multiple countries have leveled at it due to starting the war in Ukraine last February.

“The activities of organizations that will carry out exchange operations with digital currency, its transfer and storage, and providers of virtual asset services should be subject to regulation, including registration or licensing of such persons and their supervision,” Russian government financial intelligence body Rosfinmonitoring said.

Since it started the war, Russia has been having to find ways to operate in the face of global sanctions and condemnation. One of those ways is stablecoins, which can currently be used to make cross-border payments, according to government news agency Tass.

Learn more: Sanctions-Busting Russian Stablecoin Would Test US Regulations

It comes as U.S. lawmakers have long been concerned about the ways digital assets could be used to get around sanctions. The sanctions were led by the U.S. and European Union and have cut off Russia’s access to standard payment rails like SWIFT.

Because of that, Russia has been working on new bilateral payment platforms making use of “mutually acceptable tokenized instruments” to get around the need to use dollars or euros for international settlements.

Moiseev said they’re “essentially clearing platforms that we are currently developing with these countries.”

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