Russian authorities to discuss legalizing crypto trading on official exchanges

The bill will be submitted for a vote to the federal legislature in February 2018, Russian media outlets reported. However, the bill would still need approval from Russia’s federal legislature. The Bank of Russia confirmed that it had discussed with the Finance Ministry the possibility of legalizing trade in cryptocurrencies through organized trading platforms, however it opposes the motion.

According to News Week, the Finance Ministry’s bill would allow for more open cryptocurrency trading and investment within Russia. The news was celebrated by industry insiders as another sign of growing trust among government and cryptocurrencies.

However, in Russia, opinions on cryptocurrencies among government officials differ. In November 2017, head of Russia’s Ministry of Communications said the country would “never” legalize Bitcoin within its economy and in December 2017, first deputy of the Bank of Russia, called Bitcoin a “pyramid scheme”.

Still, President Vladimir Putin sees the need to regulate cryptocurrency trade in Russia, as “the government will be responsible for the difficult situations that people can get into”, the online publication continues.