The only form of electronic payment that Russia’s CBR will accept is digital rubble.
Representatives of the Central Bank of Russia (CBR) have attacked the Ministry of Finance’s proposal of backing stablecoins, which some private investors have tried to launch in the country, in a new episode of the country’s long-running struggle.
An anonymous representative of the central bank, according to local media, criticized talk of Russia-based stablecoins, which was initiated last week by the Ministry of Finance’s director of financial policy department, Ivan Chebeskov.
Chebeskov has stated his ministry’s support for the creation of stablecoins related to assets such as “the ruble, gold, oil, or grain.” He referred to it as “the proper road for developing new technology” and advised private enterprises to experiment with this type of financial tool if they deem it required.
Because the pool of underlying assets does not belong to the issuer, private stablecoins, according to the CBR speaker, “are characterized by higher risks.” They further said that the issuer makes no assurance of redemption at par, therefore the price of stablecoin is not truly stable.
In keeping with the customary CBR message, the bank’s representative stressed that the ruble is still the sole legal payment method in the country and that they believe in the digital ruble, which “combines all the benefits of digital payments with the dependability of national currency.” According to local industry experts, the central bank digital currency project is at the heart of the CBR’s distrust of all private cryptocurrencies.
On June 29, Kirill Pronin, the chief of the CBR’s department of financial technology, admitted the prospect of legalizing crypto mining under certain conditions, including the export of all mined assets to international exchanges. Ivan Chebeskov of the Ministry of Finance disagreed, pointing out the existing geopolitical hurdles for Russian miners looking to sell their crypto abroad.
