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Russia’s use of cryptocurrencies is on the rise, the head of the country’s financial watchdog has informed President Putin. The agency, He Rosfinmonitoring, is using a new blockchain analytics system to track thousands of participants in digital asset transactions, officials have revealed.
Russian Crypto Trading Volume Nearly $13 Billion, Monetary Authority Says
According to Yuriy Tikhantin, director of the Federal Financial Monitoring Service (Rosfinmonitoring) of the Russian Federation, trading volumes of Russian crypto assets are increasing.
Watchdog monitors the activities of more than 25,000 participants in cryptocurrency trading, officials said during a meeting with heads of state. The service also identified about a dozen financial institutions that offer them assistance.
Putin’s remarks, quoted by business news portal RBC, said that wherever money and new financial instruments appear, there will also be “scammers.” Chikhanchin acknowledged the increasing use of cryptocurrencies in Russia, which lacks comprehensive regulations.
“We believe that today’s cryptocurrency turnover is over 630,000 bitcoins,” he elaborated without elaborating. At current rates, that BTC value is close to $13 billion in fiat currency. According to an estimate cited by the Bank of Russia in 2021, the annual volume of crypto transactions by Russians at that time was around $5 billion.
Rosfinmonitoring has conducted approximately 120 crypto-related investigations and initiated over 60 criminal cases. Chikhanchin noted that this is now possible thanks to the launch of Russia’s new “transparent blockchain” platform.
“A year ago, we could only track bitcoin, but with this system, we can see the movement of more than 20 different crypto assets,” said the official. The cryptographic analysis tool is currently undergoing testing by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Federal Security Service, and the Commission of Inquiry. Other countries in the Commonwealth of Independent States have shown interest in acquiring it.
The transparent blockchain was adopted to shut down the darknet marketplace Hydra as part of a collaboration with law enforcement and representatives of financial intelligence agencies in other countries.
The website was taken down in early April 2022 when German authorities seized its services in a US-backed operation. The alleged administrator, Russian citizen Dmitry Pavlov, was arrested later that month.
Do you think cryptocurrency trading volumes in Russia will continue to grow? Let us know in the comments section below.
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