Russia’s Largest Bank Halts Crypto Plans Due to Central Bank’s Negative Stance

[Magician]

Russia's largest bank, the state-owned Sberbank, has suspended its crypto-related plans due to the central bank’s negative stance on the industry, local news agency TASS reports on May 30.

Sberbank vice president Andrey Shemetov has reportedly revealed the news at a recent press conference, claiming that Sberbank had been awaiting crypto legislation that would allow it to trade cryptocurrencies.

However, Shemetov stressed that the local financial regulator and the central bank, the Bank of Russia, is against the adoption of the crypto space at the moment. As such, the bank had to halt its plans relating to cryptocurrencies.

In the report, the official did not specify what particular project the bank had to suspend.

In January 2018, Sberbank’s subsidiary in Switzerland, Sberbank Switzerland AG, announced that it was planning to launch cryptocurrency exchange. At the time, Shemetov claimed that the bank had chosen Switzerland to establish the exchange because Russian authorities did not allow crypto operations.

Recently, Sberbank has requested a client to provide data on their income from cryptocurrency revenue.

Russian authorities have as of yet been unable to pass crypto legislation for a variety of reasons.

Most recently, TASS reported that Russia had to postpone the adoption of a crypto law due to a requirement from Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering to legislate major industry terms such as crypto and bitcoin (BTC), instead of using the sole term “digital assets.” In particular, Russian lawmakers were reportedly avoiding some terminology in the bill in accordance with a “certain position” of the Russia’s central bank.

However, the central bank has subsequently reacted to the report, claiming that the draft bill on crypto regulation is prepared enough to be adopted in the spring of 2019, in line with the order of the country’s president, Vladimir Putin.

Source

[Noverteno]

The position of the Russian leadership on cryptocurrency is very often changing. Therefore, even after adopting in the first reading a very bad cryptocurrency bill for the Russian population, one cannot yet say what the final law will be. Of course, there is almost no hope that citizens will be free to use cryptocurrency. However, let's see, they promised to adopt such a law soon.

[Alcor]

Spring, summer has already passed, autumn has come, and there is still no cryptocurrency legislation in Russia. The current leadership of this country is hardly interested in providing its citizens with financial freedom and the development of cryptocurrency. I am very pessimistic about the prospect of introducing cryptocurrency in Russia. They wanted to adopt streamlined and non-specific laws, and the FATF required specifics.

[Adoragamand]

What do you mean by free to use cryptocurrency ? They shouldn't be free to use it anyway. Can we say it will really be done ? I am highly doubt about that anyway. I do want to make it possible but it stil nowhere near close date for that matter. Can we do that ?