ChainCatcher news, according to Cryptonews, Russian Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina emphasized again on April 3 during a speech at the State Duma that the use of cryptocurrencies in the domestic economy should be restricted and advocated for stricter penalties for violations of the ban. Nabiullina, a key ally of President Putin, currently leads the Central Bank of Russia's sovereign digital currency (digital ruble) project. She pointed out that while the central bank supports exploring the cross-border application of crypto assets within a specific "regulatory sandbox" framework, it firmly opposes their infiltration into the domestic monetary system and settlement activities.Since 2020, Russia has banned payments in cryptocurrencies, but current enforcement is relatively lax, and there is a lack of a clear legal framework for related transactions. Nabiullina called for increased legal accountability for the use of cryptocurrencies for payments within Russia, stating: "Our position has not changed. We cannot allow cryptocurrencies to penetrate domestic monetary circulation and domestic settlements. We suggest seeking investment opportunities in cryptocurrencies while increasing the responsibility for using cryptocurrencies in domestic settlements." Nabiullina also supports allowing "high-net-worth qualified investors" to invest in crypto assets within the "sandbox" and proposed discussing the extension of some derivative investment permissions to ordinary qualified investors. She emphasized the need to protect retail investors from the risks posed by the highly volatile crypto market.Furthermore, after Nabiullina's speech, Anatoly Aksakov, chairman of the State Duma's Financial Market Committee, pointed out that there are still differences in Moscow regarding cryptocurrency regulation. There are clear divisions within the Duma on crypto regulation, with some members supporting restrictions while others show strong interest.

ChainCatcher news, the Governor of the Central Bank of Russia, Nabiullina, stated that the Central Bank of Russia considers cryptocurrency to be a volatile financial instrument. She reiterated the Russian side's concerns about the risks of crypto assets, pointing out their high volatility, making it difficult to be widely adopted as a means of payment or store of value.

ChainCatcher news, according to Cryptonews, the Central Bank of Russia has invited the Republic of Tatarstan to assist in testing the smart contract functionality of the digital ruble. The Tatarstan Ministry of Finance has established a working group that will conduct conditional targeted funding expenditure experiments using the central bank's testing platform, with the tests expected to conclude in the third quarter of 2025.A month prior, the Central Bank of Russia had "indefinitely postponed" the nationwide rollout plan for the digital ruble originally scheduled for August this year, but this testing indicates that the digital ruble project is still progressing. Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina stated that the new launch date will be announced later.At the same time, the Moscow Metro also announced the expansion of its digital ruble pilot project, collaborating with the central bank and VTB Bank to test the functionality of recharging Troika smart cards using the digital ruble. These developments are similar to the pilot projects of China's digital yuan, but Russia has previously stated that one of the main functions of the digital ruble is to assist Russian enterprises in making cross-border payments with other countries that use digital fiat currencies.

ChainCatcher news, according to Cointelegraph, the Central Bank of Russia has proposed to launch a 3-year pilot program for cryptocurrency trading, which is only available to high-net-worth investors who meet specific asset or income thresholds.According to the proposal, investors who hold at least $11.5 million or have an annual income of $5 million can participate in the pilot.The pilot still requires government approval, and if passed, it could become an important step for Russia in promoting the development of the cryptocurrency market.

ChainCatcher news, according to market news, the Central Bank of Russia (BANK OF RUSSIA) allows investors to purchase cryptocurrencies "in a limited way."

ChainCatcher news, the Central Bank of Russia has introduced regulations to manage foreign exchange operations involving digital rights. According to Russian law, digital rights include electronic records such as cryptocurrencies, tokenized securities, and digital tokens. These rights represent claims or obligations related to assets or services. The new decree will take effect on January 11 and outlines the obligations of residents engaged in such transactions, aiming to clarify and strengthen the oversight of digital assets used for trade and payment purposes.A key requirement outlined in the regulation is that foreign trade contracts involving digital rights settlements must be registered with authorized banks. The document states: "Foreign trade contracts, including those settled using digital rights, must be registered with authorized banks. The registration thresholds for these contracts remain unchanged: import contracts exceeding 3 million rubles and export contracts exceeding 10 million rubles."In addition to registration, the Central Bank of Russia also explained: "The regulation specifies the documents and information that residents must provide to banks, including transaction data related to the transfer or receipt of digital rights as a means of payment under foreign trade contracts, as well as data related to other foreign exchange operations involving digital rights."By defining these requirements, the Central Bank of Russia aims to integrate digital rights into the broader financial system while reducing the risks associated with their use.

ChainCatcher news, the Central Bank of Russia is developing a new monitoring platform to combat illegal cryptocurrency over-the-counter trading services and enhance financial security.Sources revealed that this initiative is being implemented in cooperation with Rosfinmonitoring. The platform will centralize information on suspicious activities, enabling banks to take proactive measures to refuse account openings for high-risk individuals.Bogdan Shablya, head of the Central Bank's Financial Monitoring and Currency Control Service, confirmed that the platform's goal is to make illegal financial operations economically unviable by blocking them at entry points. Unlike major monitoring companies that heavily rely on passive measures of KYC systems, this platform will actively target individual accounts and focus on real-time detection of abnormal trading patterns.

ChainCatcher news, according to Ledger Insights, the Central Bank of Russia recently shared its business model for the Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). By the end of 2025, all digital ruble transactions will be free, with the first banks and merchants expected to go live on July 1. The central bank plans to earn fees by operating the system.Meanwhile, at a hearing held last week in the State Duma of Russia, the Association of Russian Banks (ABR) expressed dissatisfaction among banks. They are concerned about the potential outflow of bank deposits and the high deployment costs.It is reported that the Central Bank of Russia does not intend to limit the holdings of the CBDC. According to Info24, ABR Chairman Anatoly Kozlachkov stated that the setup cost for each bank is about 100 million rubles (1 million USD), while some banks have a capital of only 3 million USD.

ChainCatcher news, according to Walter Bloomberg, the Governor of the Central Bank of Russia, Nabiullina, stated that we do not intend to invest in cryptocurrencies.

ChainCatcher news, Sberbank CEO Herman Gref stated that the law currently prohibits the use of cryptocurrencies as a means of payment within the Russian Federation, and it is unlikely to be allowed in the near future.Gref clarified at a meeting in Moscow that while new legislation in Russia allows for the use of digital currencies and cryptocurrencies for international payments, their use domestically remains restricted. He also pointed out that if other countries are willing to accept it, the Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) of Russia—the digital ruble—can be used for global transactions.As the largest bank and state-owned financial institution in Russia, Sberbank is closely monitoring these developments, although Gref expressed uncertainty about the adoption of the digital ruble abroad.

ChainCatcher news, according to CoinDesk, the Central Bank of Russia plans to achieve widespread use of the digital ruble by July 2025. The Central Bank of Russia stated on Thursday, "Banks need to enable customers to open and top up digital ruble accounts, make transfers, and accept digital rubles within their infrastructure, promoting the widespread use of the national digital currency. Importantly, it should be available for citizens and businesses to use freely on an equal basis with cash and non-cash funds."It is reported that Russia has been testing its CBDC with 12 banks. Earlier this month, the number of participants in the trial expanded from 600 to 9,000.

ChainCatcher news, according to CryptoSlate, Russian Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina stated in an interview, "By 2031, CBDCs will be a part of everyday life. The digital ruble has the advantage of free or low transaction fees, which will drive the adoption of CBDCs."

ChainCatcher news, the Governor of the Central Bank of Russia stated that Russia plans to launch international cryptocurrency payments by the end of this year to counter Western sanctions. The central bank is prepared to take flexible measures and has already been discussing the conditions of this initiative with various ministries, agencies, and enterprises.In addition, the State Duma of Russia (the lower house of parliament) has preliminarily approved legislation allowing businesses to use cryptocurrency for international payments.

ChainCatcher news, the Governor of the Central Bank of Russia, Nabiullina, stated that the Central Bank of Russia expects to test cryptocurrency payments for the first time this year. (Jin Shi)

ChainCatcher news, according to Bitcoin.com, Russia supports expanding the types of currencies and payment methods for international settlements. Last week, the Governor of the Central Bank of Russia, Elvira Nabiullina, stated that the bank would support the acceleration of drafting a bill to support the use of cryptocurrencies for international payments. However, Nabiullina emphasized that these payments should be introduced under an experimental sandbox legal framework.It is reported that the institution has been opposed to the circulation and use of cryptocurrencies for national payments, as these assets are not under the control of national regulatory authorities. However, the central bank of the country is open to their use for foreign settlements. In contrast, the use of national digital assets (also known as CBDCs) for payments has already been explored without any exploratory sandbox.

ChainCatcher news, the Central Bank of Russia will conduct practical tests with 13 banks next week, expanding its digital ruble pilot program. The Central Bank of Russia stated that launching the pilot operation of the digital ruble is the most important phase of the project, which will allow testing the operation of the digital ruble platform and developing all necessary procedures with customer participation, adjusting processes as needed, and ensuring that the customer journey is convenient and easy to understand for users.Olga Skorobogatova, First Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Russia, stated that starting from 2025, citizens and businesses should be able to use the central bank digital currency "according to their own requirements."ChainCatcher previously reported that Russian President Putin has signed the "Digital Ruble Law," which will come into effect on August 1, 2023. According to this law, the Central Bank of Russia will be the main operator of the digital ruble platform. The digital ruble is intended to be used as a means of payment and remittance, and not for investment purposes.

ChainCatcher news, the Central Bank of Russia has announced the official logo of its Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) and the commission for different types of business related to its CBDC. By the end of 2024, all services will be free, but starting from 2025, B2B transactions will incur a fee of 15 rubles (approximately $0.16) per transaction, while individuals will pay a fee of 0.3% of the total transaction amount when transferring to commercial accounts, and 0.2% when paying for public services.It is reported that Russian President Putin signed the digital ruble bill into law on July 24. The CBDC is scheduled to officially take effect on August 1, 2023, with a pilot program initially conducted in 13 local banks.

ChainCatcher news, the Central Bank of the Russian Federation has included the public joint-stock company Moscow Exchange MICEX-RTS in the register of digital financial asset exchange operators (DFA), making the Moscow Exchange the first institution on this register.It is reported that only organizations listed in the DFA register are authorized to engage in activities related to digital assets.

ChainCatcher news, the Central Bank of Russia stated that the system supporting the issuance and circulation of the Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) in Russia may collaborate well with digital fiat currencies of other countries. It is developing various interaction models between the digital ruble and other CBDCs. Alternatives include establishing bidirectional integration with each CBDC platform or launching an international digital platform to facilitate simultaneous interaction between digital currencies from multiple issuers.However, the Central Bank of Russia still opposes the free circulation of decentralized cryptocurrencies in the country and does not intend to create a national cryptocurrency exchange. (Source link)