Russia Not Eager To Pass Major Crypto Bill Just Yet

By Sumedha Bose

A major crypto bill, “On Digital Financial Assets” (DFA) was all set to be adopted in Russia, but unfortunately the Russian parliament, the State Duma, has halted the adoption of the bill as of now.

The  chairman of the State Duma Committee on Financial Markets, Anatoly Aksakov, has gone on to record to say that the State Duma is considering taking up the bill for discussion again during the autumn session.

“The law on the DFA is set to decide whether we will prohibit cryptocurrencies as a medium of exchange in Russian legislation, meaning that there will be no exchange points nor exchanges that work with cryptocurrencies. We have not yet reached consensus on the issue. We need to define what cryptocurrency is at the legislative level. Then there is a fork in the road: we either prohibit organizing infrastructure for the purchase and sale of cryptocurrencies in Russia, or allow it.”

He has disclosed that the hold up is a result of disagreements between officials regarding the fate of digital currencies in Russia, and that they haven’t been able to reach a consensus on whether or not the bill covers everything related to digital currencies in Russia.

The bill was slated to be adopted in June by the country’s parliament, but this new development is sure to make crypto enthusiasts a little anxious. Looks like we will have to wait till the autumn session to find out how this story progresses.