No separate regulation for Facebook's crypto, says Russia's Deputy Finance Minister

Russia is not planning on creating any special regulations separate from the ones that it is now thinking of introducing to cover the crypto industry, as a whole. As things stand, it will still not be possible to purchase anything in the country using the digital coins. While the trading and storage of such currencies will still be allowed, only the Ruble will be used as a means of a legal transaction in Russia.

In a report by Interfax, Deputy Finance Minister Alexei Moiseev was quoted in making it clear that Libra will be just like every other crypto coin in terms of how Russia will be regulating it. Traders in the country will be glad to know that it will not be banned, but as always, it also cannot be used as legal tender. That honor will still be reserved for the country’s fiat.

"No one is going to introduce a ban. A large number of businesses ask when it will finally be possible to legally conduct an ICO [initial coin offering] transparently. This will definitely be regulated, permitted, and that is about it," Moiseev said and then later added, “The ruble is our national currency, and all calculations must be made in it.”

This sentiment echoes the statement made by Anatoly Aksakov, the Chairman of the Russian State Duma Committee on Financial Market, CoinDesk reports. Recently, Aksakov said that Libra would not be legalized in the country due to the threat that it poses on its own currency. This is a concern that is shared by many other regulators, with many of them pointing to Libra’s potential to become a sovereign currency.

At the very least, the news that crypto trading in the country will be allowed is encouraging to traders. It means that Russians will not be left out of the loop, even if certain services are not available to them.