In an exclusive statement, a Russian news outlet had previously reported that both the Bank of Russia and the Office of the Prosecutor General are collectively working to impose a ban on all access to cryptocurrency exchanges within the Russian territory.
Sergei Shvetsov, the Bank of Russia's deputy governor, is said to have affirmed that these institutions are collaborating with the country's attorney general in a move to block the websites that allow citizens to purchase digital currencies.
At an exclusive financial conference, Shvetsov stated that the government was of unanimous agreement that the use of cryptocurrencies as investment units posed insurmountably high risks, particularly for both citizens and their businesses alike.
He also cited the digital units as dubious instruments to which they would not grant easy and direct access. Shvetsov then went on to describe cryptocurrency and Bitcoin markets as consisting of a "pyramid scheme."
He further claimed that Bitcoin was slowly becoming an asset that is purchased to facilitate quick returns and, as such, exhibited similar characteristics to a typical so-called pyramid scheme.
He damningly described cryptocurrency markets saying that the Russian Central Bank identifies all crypto-derivatives as a negative trend for the country's market.
This decision by the Russian government follows that of China and South Korea, both which have imposed similar bans on ICOs and cryptocurrencies; although China's resolution is rumored to be impermanent.
However, for Russia, the news is slightly puzzling considering that just recently, the nation had pinned down a deal that sought to establish Ethereum Russia, wherein the Russian Minister of Finance Anton Siluanov confirmed that procedures were underway to legalize cryptocurrencies finally.
In a statement, he said that the nation understood the validity of cryptocurrencies and it was therefore illogical to ban them as opposed to regulating them.
Considering his earlier announcement, this ban will be temporary and might have been imposed pending the submission of proper regulations later in the year.
In recent weeks, concerns questioning Russia's regulatory future regarding cryptocurrencies have again re-emerged.
Bitcoin's value is successfully surging up the heights against all odds, and this digital currency nonetheless keeps running into stern regulatory barriers erected by some governments.
However, just two weeks after federal authorities in Russia hinted that Bitcoin exchanges would be banned in the country, Russian President Vladimir Putin released a series of presidential orders related to blockchain and cryptocurrencies technology.
Putin had several orders for the government, such as proposing a special regulatory platform where blockchain developers can demonstrate new applications and technologies to the Bank of Russia.
The idea behind this move is to appropriately control the cryptocurrencies. The concept of this platform, known as a regulatory "sandbox," has already been implemented in the United Kingdom.
Another order Putin released is calling for a formation of a single payment space. Allegedly, Russia is pursuing its own national cryptocurrency. President Putin's regulation came after weeks of opposing statements associated with cryptocurrencies' future in Russia.
Generally, the domestic regulations have been proposed as a mechanism to evidently lower the crimes, scams and fraud activities generated by cryptocurrencies.
But when it comes to Russia, it's safe to suppose it may be tied up in the country's so-called strategy to launch its own national cryptocurrency.
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