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Russia "Actively Discussing" Allowing Crypto For International Payments

• https://www.zerohedge.com, by Tyler Durden

"When it comes to our 'friendly' countries, like China or Turkey, which don't pressure us, then we have been offering them for a while to switch payments to national currencies, like rubles and yuan," Zavalny said during the press conference.

"With Turkey, it can be lira and rubles. So there can be a variety of currencies, and that's a standard practice. If they want bitcoin, we will trade in bitcoin."

And while chatter has been focused on Putin's "Rubles-for-Gas" demands and the fact that the Ruble has soared to multi-year highs relative to its fiat peers.

But today, the Interfax news agency quoted a government official saying on Friday that Russia is considering allowing cryptocurrency to be used for international payments

"The idea of using digital currencies in transactions for international settlements is being actively discussed," Ivan Chebeskov, head of the finance ministry's financial policy department, was quoted as saying.

Discussions have reportedly been ongoing for months and though the government expects cryptocurrencies to be legalized as a means of payment sooner or later, no consensus has yet been reached.

The finance ministry is discussing adding the latest proposal on international payments to an updated version of a draft law, the Vedomosti newspaper reported on Friday, citing government officials.

Allowing crypto as a means of settlement for international trade would help counter the impact of Western sanctions, which has seen Russia's access to traditional cross-border payment mechanisms "limited," Chebeskov said.


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