MOSCOW, January 25. /TASS/. The authorities can definitely come to a compromise when deciding in the future of cryptocurrencies in Russia, Anatoly Aksakov, head of the State Duma committee on the financial market, told reporters on Tuesday on the sidelines of a conference on cryptocurrencies. The State Duma is the lower house of the Russian parliament.
"Compromise is always possible until a decision is made. Obviously, that is why they published that report (the Central Bank - TASS), in particular in order to find a compromise. I would not dramatize the situation like that," Aksakov said, answering a question about the possibility of a compromise following the Finance Ministry's proposals announced at the conference.
The head of the State Duma Committee also noted that the Bank of Russia has always had a tough position regarding cryptocurrencies, the Finance Ministry of has a softer one, and the deputies have different points of view.
Aksakov also suggested that the Bank of Russia, if there are serious arguments, could agree with the option of stricter regulation, rather than a ban on cryptocurrencies.
"If there are serious arguments in favor of strict regulation, but not a ban, I assume that they (the Bank of Russia - TASS) will also agree with this position," the head of the committee said.
Earlier during the conference, Ivan Chebeskov, head of the financial policy department of the Finance Ministry, said that the regulation of the cryptocurrency market would protect the rights of citizens. In his opinion, cryptocurrency should be regulated, not banned. According to the official, the Finance Ministry of has already prepared a concept for regulating the cryptocurrency market and sent it for consideration to the government.
Earlier this month, the Bank of Russia released a report in which it proposed to ban the issuance, mining and circulation of cryptocurrencies in Russia in order to alleviate the dangers caused by the proliferation of cryptocurrencies.
"The status of the Russian ruble, which is not a reserve currency, makes it impossible to apply a soft approach in Russia and ignore the growth of risks. In our opinion, additional measures are appropriate," the document says.
In particular, "in order to reduce the threats caused by the proliferation of cryptocurrencies," the Bank of Russia proposes introducing a number of changes to the legislation.
"[It is proposed to] introduce a ban on the issue and (or) organization of the issue, organization of circulation of crypto-currencies (including by crypto-exchanges, crypto-exchangers, P2P platforms) on the territory of the Russian Federation and establish liability for violating this ban," the regulator says in the report.