The relationship between the Russian government and the cryptocurrency industry remains as chaotic and as unpredictable as ever. Some time ago, the country’s government was supposedly planning to ban crypto, which never happened. Then, it suddenly decided to legalize it but not allow it to be used as a means of payment. Now, Russia came out with a new order, which is for all government officials to dispose of any coins they may own.
Russia orders government officials and business executives to dispose of crypto
A recently published document, issued by the Russian Ministry of Labor, informed officials of both Federal and local governments that they are no longer allowed to hold any cryptocurrency. Anyone who may have bought Bitcoin or some other coin in the past is now obligated to dispose of such assets.
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The document was actually posted over a month ago, on December 16th, 2020. It explained that the new directive is supposed to eliminate corruption among the country’s leaders.
The letter actually goes beyond including only those in various government bodies. Instead, it also includes the board members of the Bank of Russia, and even the chairs of government-owned companies and corporations.
Even the spouses and under-age children of these individuals are prohibited from owning digital currencies, or any digital assets that were issued outside Russia.
Russian govt officials must comply by April 1st
The letter mentioned that government officials and other mentioned parties are obligated to do as instructed due to the law on digital assets that came into force in January — weeks after the letter originally emerged.
The new law comes with multiple amendments to other laws in Russia, including the one that prevents any government official from opening accounts in banks outside of Russia. This now also includes digital assets.
The letter mentioned that all government officials must dispose of their coins by April 1st, 2021, although there are no strict rules for disclosure at this time.
It is not known how many government officials — if any — own cryptocurrency, but by April 1st, their number will be brought down to zero.
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