Crypto Mining: Putin Says Russia Has a ‘Competitive Advantage’ – Wants to ‘Tax and Regulate,’ Not Ban It

It was big news recently when Russia contemplated a ban on cryptocurrency activities in the country. Now President Vladimir Putin is reportedly backing plans for regulating crypto mining in Russia, reports Yahoo Finance!

On Wednesday, Putin countered calls by the central bank for a blanket ban on cryptocurrencies. Speaking at a video conference with his government officials on Wednesday, he said Russia has “competitive advantages” in crypto mining.

Putin for tax and regulate rather than banning

The President suggested that they “tax and regulate” cryptocurrency mining rather than banning the practice.

Bloomberg quoted the Russian President saying, “We also have certain competitive advantages here, especially in the so-called mining,” “I mean the surplus of electricity and well-trained personnel available in the country.”

Three people familiar with the situation were of the opinion that crypto-related activities will get approved. “The president’s backing, combined with his public comments this week, means that the proposals are likely to be approved,” they said per the Bloomberg report.

The report further adds them saying, “The President supports the proposal to restrict mining to regions with a surplus of electricity, such as Irkutsk, Krasnoyarsk, and Karelia.”

Putin urged his country’s central bank to function in tandem with his government on the way ahead for permitting crypto-related activities. The President’s comments came in line considering the fact that Russia ranks only third on the list of crypto mining countries based on hash rate distribution. On the other hand, the US and Kazakhstan are ranked first and second.

Russians own 12% of the global crypto market value

As reported by CoinGape recently, Russians own more than $200 Billion worth of cryptocurrency and hold almost 12% of Global cryptocurrency marketcap. These figures were reported by Bloomberg and Govt. of Russia.

The Kremlin released a roadmap signed by the deputy chairman of the government, Dmitry Chernyshenko, that sought to put crypto regulations in place by the end of 2022. As disclosed by RBK, a Russian media outlet, the document suggested introducing know your customers (KYC) and anti-money laundering rules for crypto platforms. The roadmap also seeks to set up a supervisory body for crypto, as well as set up penalties for breaking the proposed rules.