Russian Parliament offered amendments providing for ban of bitcoins and crypto currencies that would make their usage illegal with imprisonment of up to 7 years.
Is Bitcoin forbidden? Fines and penalties in Russia. According to the local RBC report, State Duma offered a number of bills about the usage and issue of crypto currencies with heavy fines for possible breakings. But nobody voted for it. They were just sent to the Ministry of Economic Development. The head of the committee Anatoly Aksakov stated that the final statement was not approved.
The Senior Legal Officer of Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner and teacher at digital school in Moscow Dmitry Kirillov said that adoption of the law would mean termination of crypto currency circulation in Russian crypto space. And besides, if crypto assets are banned, people will not be able to sell, buy or mine them. Only possessions, receipts or transitions are allowed, but only after providing all the information to regulator. In addition, it will be forbidden for private companies and legal persons to conduct operations with digital currencies, for example, to take them as a form of payment or service.
As for offered penalties, they will be imposed for organization of exchange and transactions or provision of services for release of the digital assets with sites usage registered in the country or equipment situated there as well from a minimum 50 thousand up to the maximum 1 million rubles ($14000). For those who use crypto as a form of currency, possessions will be forfeited and there will be a penalty from 20 up to 400 thousand rubles ($5600). In case of serious damage caused to citizens, organization, public authorities or if illegal actions will lead to widespread enrichment, so it may cause deprivation of liberty for a term from 1 up to 7 years.
According to the general manager of OrderCom LLC Dmitry Galushko, the adoption of the decision will put an end to crypto economics of the country. “If Russia is planning to create a digital economics, it’s necessary to have another approach. It means not to ban, but to give the possibility for creation of innovative ideas, projects and technologies”.
Wow! May be it’s time to stop! The offer of the law seems to be very strict to imagine that it can indeed be accepted.
Chinese example shows that the citizens continue to use and change crypto currency, using just external tools in spite of the fact that they have strict State imposed laws. Moreover, it’s difficult to imagine that the government wants to insulate itself from crypto currencies, when China and the USA, probably, are becoming serious with respect to them. Actually, it’s only a bill and it’s not clear if it will be adopted or not. In fact, our Government has a negative attitude towards crypto currencies, especially in politics, but it’s impossible to ban their use by people. Otherwise we can follow the example of China that tried to block its usage but then it had to reconsider its decision.
