Russian Chamber of Commerce Head Wants Crypto Mining As Business

The Russian Chamber of Commerce thinks crypto mining should be considered as an established “business”.

Russia Pushes Efforts To Regulate Crypto

Sergey Katyrin, the chairman of the Chamber, has written to the Finance Minister Anton Siluanov asking Bitcoin mining to be excluded from the ‘gray zone.’

The appeal comes after Prez Vladimir Putin backed a proposal from the government to tax and regulate crypto mining activities, despite the central bank’s continued hard line.

In the document dated Thursday, Katyrin stressed that it is important to change current views on cryptocurrency by making “significant revisions.” For instance, by enforcing taxation, ensuring other compulsory payments, and removing mining activities from the grey zone, the Russian news agency Tass reported.

“This will make it possible to defuse tension on matters of illegal electricity use,” Katyrin said in the letter.

Last week, Putin highlighted in a virtual conference that the country’s “surplus energy and well-trained workforce” could bring “advantages” to crypto mining. He further asked the Bank of Russia and the ministry to “come to a consensus.”

Crypto’s Legal Status – To Be Determined

Additionally, the Chamber head has suggested lawmakers think about “the legal status of cryptocurrency produced by miners and its further circulation” and “the legal status of cryptocurrency as a payment instrument.”

Furthermore, Katyrin stated empathetically that the ruble’s status as Russia’s official currency “should not be doubted.”

“However, it is practical to study the experience of countries where cryptocurrency is a digital expression of value and is not a means of payment, while cryptocurrency exchange for goods is treated as a barter transaction,” Katyrin emphasized.

He also wanted the central bank to come up with a “clear-cut position” when serving individuals on crypto transactions.

Meanwhile, Russian authorities have agreed on a ‘roadmap’ to restrict cryptos, but not ban them completely, as advocated by the central bank. The roadmap revied by the Russian news agency RBK said that the government is having a consensus to have regulations for cryptocurrencies by the end of the year.

In January, the Central Bank of Russia proposed to ban “all cryptocurrency issuance and operations”, including stopping banks to invest in cryptos and banning crypto mining activities. The bank cited systematic financial risks and highlighted its role in illegal activities.

According to Bloomberg and a Russian online news website Meduza, the Federal Security Service has insisted the central bank on a blanket ban on cryptocurrencies in the country, in order to undermine its use to finance the opposition and independent media.