The Russian government continues to maintain that payments made in cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin will cause the collapse of the country’s financial system.
Despite El Salvador’s official acceptance of Bitcoin (BTC) as legal tender on Tuesday, Sept. 7, the Russian government has repeated its opposition to the possibility of BTC being recognised as an official currency.
Russia’s official spokesperson to President Vladimir Putin, Dmitry Peskov, stated on Tuesday that the country has no reason to recognize Bitcoin as legal cash. The statement was made according to the Russian news agency RIA Novosti.
In his speech, the Kremlin spokesperson stated that classifying cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin alongside traditional money instruments would be detrimental to the country’s financial and economic structure.
“It is clear that Russia is not prepared for such actions,” Peskov is said to have said.
Russia’s long-standing skepticism toward Bitcoin is reflected in Peskov’s latest remarks, which echo a similar statement made by Anatoly Aksakov, a member of the State Duma who was instrumental in enacting the country’s ban on cryptocurrency payments.
Aksakov stated in August that accepting cryptocurrency as payment would ultimately amount to the “destruction of a financial system.”
As part of the government’s key crypto regulation, “On Digital Financial Assets,” which went into effect in January 2021, cryptocurrency payments were formally prohibited in the country. Russians are not prohibited from obtaining or trading cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, according to the legislation.
In May 2021, it was reported that certain Russian MPs were exploring a partial reversal of the crypto payment ban, discussing modifications that would allow crypto payments to be used as a “contractual medium.”
