Russia’s cryptocurrency law will come into effect on November 1 and will give the government a way to exert more control over mining and strengthen oversight of digital currency operations. This is a major shift in Russia’s stance on cryptocurrencies.
The law, passed by the State Duma, Russia’s lower house of parliament, allows the government to impose location-based restrictions on cryptocurrency mining. Authorities will have to determine where mining is prohibited or restricted, using regional limits on electricity consumption and other considerations. Additionally, the law empowers the government to regulate the infrastructure that enables mining processes, including the operations of mining pools in respective regions.
Russia’s new cryptocurrency law will expand access to the digital currency address database to various federal services from the Federal Financial Supervision Service to a number of law enforcement and regulatory agencies. In doing so, it will further strengthen the fight against illicit financial activities in Russia’s cryptocurrency space.
