New Version of Russian Crypto Bill Defangs Punishments for Using Crypto
A criminal offense under the law, including the use of a computer, computer equipment or computer hardware in a public place, according to the lawmakers, who will hold tomorrow the second reading of the bill. The Financial Market Committee of the Duma has proposed a new version of the bill, the “Cryptocurrency Law and the Financial Market Act of 2017.”
If the bill passes through this development into a draft for adoption, it will undergo three readings before being submitted to the Duma’s Financial Markets Committee for approval. While the second reading is intended to summarize the amendments and proposals of the draft law, the third reading will be linked to its final adoption.
The bill provides for “a number of new criminal penalties for the illegal use of digital currencies and a number of other offenses,” according to the statement released Monday. Russia’s deputy chief of staff in the Ministry of Justice, Igor Kuznetsov, confirmed the news to local news agency RIA Novosti.
The bill will not contain liability, Aksakov said, pointing out that the committee decided to abandon the law on administrative and criminal offenses introduced into the bill. According to Aksakov, the DFA’s bill will probably be passed in July and then again in the spring of next year, with a final vote in June or July.
It is expected to be enforced from January 1, 2021, with a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a fine of up to $1 million. Butchkov, a law professor at the Russian Academy of Sciences and former deputy chairman of the National Security Council, is concerned about the potential for a crackdown.
Authorities are proposing a possible ban on the use of the digital currency in the country’s financial sector, according to a report by the Interfax news agency.
Media reports said the proposal was part of the bill but not in its final version. The DFA is also said to have been behind the upcoming cryptocurrency legislation in the United States, as there is also a bill called Digital Currency (DC). According to Aksakov, it is expected that the State Duma will adopt the law “On Digital Currency” during the autumn session, which ends in late December.
To move forward, we need to look at the history of cryptography development in Russia and the current legal status in the country. The bill was first introduced in January 2018 and delayed for several months before Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered it to be passed at least twice. Aksakov finally admitted that the delay was due to a lack of a clear understanding of the provisions of the bill and the need for public debate.
