Discussion of the prohibition of Bitcoin in Russia continues and goes to a new level

Consideration of the draft law on the prohibition of operations with Bitcoin will begin as early as the autumn session of the State Duma, hopes in the Ministry of Finance. As Deputy Finance Minister Alexei Moiseyev told journalists on Friday, “it may turn out to be accepted at this session.” According to the deputy minister, the bill is being coordinated.

A. Moiseev noted that there are comments from law enforcement agencies on the document. “They are not conceptual, but about what penalties to establish, for what, how to apply them. Naturally, we will now take these comments into account. But the concept of the ban does not change, ”he said.

Draft bill prohibiting Bitcoin in Russia already exists, but is currently not available to the press. Despite the fact that the draft version of the proposed bill has not yet been published, officials say that they are planning criminal prosecution of people who earn digital currency, usually with the help of productive computers, and those who will use it for conducting transactions. The Ministry of Finance also asked regulators to close access to currency exchanges and online stores that accept Bitcoin.

At the moment, only two countries in the world have criminalized users of cryptocurrency, this is Bolivia and Ecuador, but Russia will become the first country in Europe to impose such a severe punishment.
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Earlier on the portal for the placement of projects of regulatory legal acts, it was reported that the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation proposes to prohibit transactions with money substitutes.

In the explanatory note to these prohibitions, Russian officials used two well-known arguments for criticizing cryptocurrencies. One of them is the old argument that Bitcoin is five years old. The authors of the draft version of the law argue that the lack of geographical boundaries, supervisory authorities and the anonymity of the transaction makes it an ideal environment for illegal transactions such as money laundering, the acquisition of prohibited goods, the provision of illegal services or the financing of terrorism. On the other hand, being unsupported by any assets, cryptocurrencies are subject to strong volatility, so the ban will be a protective measure that does not allow people to lose money as a result of speculation.