updraftplus domain was triggered too early. This is usually an indicator for some code in the plugin or theme running too early. Translations should be loaded at the init action or later. Please see Debugging in WordPress for more information. (This message was added in version 6.7.0.) in /home/aonyeani76/cryptocurrencypanther/wp-includes/functions.php on line 6131hustle domain was triggered too early. This is usually an indicator for some code in the plugin or theme running too early. Translations should be loaded at the init action or later. Please see Debugging in WordPress for more information. (This message was added in version 6.7.0.) in /home/aonyeani76/cryptocurrencypanther/wp-includes/functions.php on line 6131wpforms-lite domain was triggered too early. This is usually an indicator for some code in the plugin or theme running too early. Translations should be loaded at the init action or later. Please see Debugging in WordPress for more information. (This message was added in version 6.7.0.) in /home/aonyeani76/cryptocurrencypanther/wp-includes/functions.php on line 6131President Vladimir Putin has signed a new law granting Russian courts the power to seize or confiscate crypto assets such as Bitcoin. It comes as Russia pushes for crypto regulations and crackdown foreign crypto exchanges. Also, Telegram founder Pavel Durov is facing criminal investigations in the country. Russian President Putin Signs Law to Confiscate Crypto
The post Putin Signs Law to Confiscate Bitcoin Amid Russia’s Crypto Crackdown, Pavel Durov Probe appeared first on CoinGape.
]]>Russia’s President Vladimir Putin expressed support for Bitcoin and digital assets on Wednesday, saying that no one can ban Bitcoin and these assets will continue to develop. The move comes days after Russian President Putin signed landmark law recognizing Bitcoin and crypto assets as properties.
During a speech at the Investment Forum in Moscow, Russia on December 4, Russian President Vladimir Putin said “Bitcoin and Digital Assets will continue to develop.”
As Donald Trump plans to push for pro-Bitcoin and crypto policies, including building a strategic Bitcoin reserve, President Putin likely desires to front-run the United States. He also understands that they need to act fast to build a strategic Bitcoin reserve.
BREAKING:
Russian President Putin says “Who can ban #Bitcoin? Nobody.” pic.twitter.com/6mJ664BZZ8
— Bitcoin Magazine (@BitcoinMagazine) December 4, 2024
Last Week, Russian President Putin signed a landmark crypto taxation law, officially recognizing digital assets as property. Also, mining and sales of digital currency will not be subjected to value-added tax (VAT). Furthermore, services related to transactions within the electronic payment system (EPR), including crypto, will not incur tax liabilities.
Russia leveraged Bitcoin to evade Western sanctions during the Ukraine war. At the BRICS summit last month, the member nations also had a discussion about using crypto for cross-border payments.
President Vladimir Putin also called for the government and central bank to coordinate to curb high inflation, reported Reuters. Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina said that annual inflation continued to remain high at nearly 9%. She added that inflation would fall in 2025 and reach the central bank’s target rate of 4% in 2026.
“It is also necessary to curb inflation, which is currently at a fairly high level,” Putin told an international investment conference organized by Russia’s second-largest lender VTB in Moscow.
BTC price jumped 1% in the past 24 hours, with the price currently trading at $95,742. The 24-hour low and high are $93,629 and $97,026, respectively. Furthermore, the trading volume has increased slightly by 2% in the last 24 hours.
Varinder Singh
Varinder has over 10 years of experience in the Fintech sector, with over 5 years dedicated to blockchain, crypto, and Web3 developments. Being a technology enthusiast and analytical thinker, he has shared his knowledge of disruptive technologies in over 5000+ news, articles, and papers. With CoinGape Media, Varinder believes in the huge potential of these innovative future technologies. He is currently leading the news team to cover latest updates and developments in the crypto industry.
Disclaimer: The presented content may include the personal opinion of the author and is subject to market condition. Do your market research before investing in cryptocurrencies. The author or the publication does not hold any responsibility for your personal financial loss.
Russia President Vladimir Putin reiterated the rising question on the threat to the US Dollar‘s status as global reserve currency. Although the US dollar has been the world’s reserve currency for a long time now, its dominance is currently under threat with the BRICS group proposing to introduce a common currency. Meanwhile, speculation has been around that the group would utilize cryptocurrencies for the same.
Also Read: XRP Lawyer: Coinbase May Have Acquired Ripple Too?
BRICS, a group of five emerging economies Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, is said to be working on a common currency to counter the US Dollar dominance.
Earlier, reports quoted Russian President Putin as saying that the US dollar is losing its global role in an “objective and irreversible” process. Last week, CoinGape reported former US President Donald Trump’s warning on the threat to the Dollar’s global position. He warned that the BRICS group’s aggressive moves towards dedollarization could be a massive threat.
The Russian president had reportedly attended the BRICS 2023 in Johannesburg through video conference from Moscow. He also credited the success of reducing US Dollar’s share of member states trade to the BRICS Group. The share of US Dollar in international trade declined to 28.7 percent, he added.
With the adoption of the Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDC) by various economies across the world, the mode of digital asset payments is continuing to rise in the international trade space. Hence, with the likes of Russia, India, and China planning to bring in a new common currency, the role of crypto and Bitcoin may also be considered, at least for future use. In the United States, Bitcoin continues to gain institutional exposure with Blackrock and Fidelity among several companies exploring options to offer BTC based products.
At the same time, the US regulators are adamant against providing clear oversight rules on the crypto market, which could likely be due to concerns around dedollarization.
Also Read: Robert F Kennedy Jr Says Bitcoin Guarantees Civil Liberty
The presented content may include the personal opinion of the author and is subject to market condition. Do your market research before investing in cryptocurrencies. The author or the publication does not hold any responsibility for your personal financial loss.
Investment firm VanEck recently suspended two Russia ETFs as Western sanctions bite hard on profitability.
New York-based asset manager VanEck is liquidating its Russia exchange-traded funds (ETFs) following a lack of Western investment interest. According to VanEck, since the Russian-Ukraine strife began, US investment in Russia has effectively dried up. The Russian market has taken a hit since the country invaded neighboring Ukraine, with Moscow’s stock market closing temporarily. Furthermore, the ongoing Western sanctions against Russia essentially prohibit its major stocks, including Gazprom, from trading in the West. This unsavory development is causing liquidity issues for the funds.
Touching on the decision to wind down its Russia ETFs due to inactivity, VanEck explained in a press release Wednesday:
“The Funds’ inability to buy, sell, and take or make delivery of Russian securities has made it impossible to manage the Funds consistent with their investment objectives. The Funds will not engage in any business or investment activities except for the purposes of winding up their affairs.”
The investment management firm’s two Russia ETFs, the VanEck Russia ETF (RSX) and VanEck Russia Small-Cap ETF (RSX), effectively froze after March 4th. At the beginning of 2022, the RSX fund had over $1.3 billion in assets under management (AUM).
Presently, VanEck put fund redemptions on hold while it liquidates the positions. The firm also suggested that redemption remains suspended pursuant to a Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) order. Furthermore, VanEck said it would distribute any liquidation proceeds to investors on January 12th next year.
VanEck’s move to unwind its Russia ETFs comes on the heels of a similar announcement by Franklin Templeton. Last week, the leading asset management firm suspended its FTSE Russia ETF (FLRU) shares redemption pursuant to an SEC-exemptive order.
However, Franklin Templeton also stated that FLRU will remain in existence until at least December 31st, 2023. The reason is to allow the ETF to sell the securities if conditions allow. The fund could terminate sooner upon selling all Russian securities before the end of next year. The Franklin Templeton FTSE Russia ETF could also terminate if its funds no longer represent valid interests in their issuers.
In early August, the world’s largest asset manager, BlackRock, also suspended its iShares MSCI Russia ETF (ERUS). In a press statement at the time, the New York-based multinational investment company explained:
“Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has prompted a range of sanctions and other capital controls that prevent BlackRock and other non-Russian investors from buying and selling Russian securities. As a result, ERUS’ current holdings of Russian equity securities cannot immediately be liquidated.”
BlackRock also said that it would start liquidating ERUS later that month. According to the firm, it would distribute its current liquid assets to shareholders minus the amount of a reserve estimation. This reserve could cover ERUS’ anticipated transaction costs associated with the liquidation.
BlackRock also stated back in August that the fund’s liquidation could take an extended period.
Tolu is a cryptocurrency and blockchain enthusiast based in Lagos. He likes to demystify crypto stories to the bare basics so that anyone anywhere can understand without too much background knowledge.
When he’s not neck-deep in crypto stories, Tolu enjoys music, loves to sing and is an avid movie lover.
The largest bank in Russia, Sber, has announced that its proprietary blockchain platform will be compatible with Ethereum.
In a press release, the bank, whose majority shareholder is the Russian government with a “50% + 1 share” option, announced the new capabilities for its proprietary open blockchain platform.
The announcement was made during the first international meeting of blockchain industry participants for businesses. The organizer of the event was Sber Blockchain Laboratory.
As the announcement states, the Sber platform will be technologically compatible with the world’s largest decentralized financial ecosystem, Ethereum.
This means that developers will be able to freely transfer smart contracts and entire projects between the bank’s blockchain network and Ethereum.
Sber’s blockchain platform will also integrate with ConsenSys’ MetaMask wallet, which has recently come under fire for IP tracking. Users and developers will be able to issue their own tokens and create smart contracts.
In addition, integration with the bank’s information systems will allow payments in smart contracts to be made in rubles.
“The Sberbank blockchain laboratory works closely with external developers and partner companies, and I am glad that our community will be able to run DeFi applications on Sber’s infrastructure,” said Alexander Nam.
The director of the Sberbank Blockchain Laboratory expressed optimism that “given the rapid development of Web3, platforms supporting various blockchain protocols will be in increasing demand.”
And Sber will be able to bring together developers, enterprises and financial institutions in both joint market research and development of practical business applications, the announcement said.
Notably, Sber had also launched Russia’s first blockchain ETF in December last year. Moreover, in early 2021, Sber had applied to the Russian Central Bank for permission to launch its proprietary stablecoin “Sbercoin”.
Permission was granted by the central bank in the spring of 2022, after which Sber completed its first transaction with its digital currency in June.
Remarkably, Sber’s announcement came just days after Russian President Vladimir Putin voiced his support for an international payment system based on blockchain technology.
Putin criticized the monopoly in global financial payment systems, saying that the current global financial system “is controlled by a small club of states and financial groups.”
At a conference organized by Sberbank, Putin said the new system must be independent of banks and third-party interference. According to him, this new system needs to be based on a digital currency and blockchain technology.
At press time, the Ethereum (ETH) price was at $1.274. Yesterday, the price was rejected at the key resistance level of $1310 and may now seek support at $1231.
Only after that, ETH is likely to tackle the resistance zone at $1350, which raises the prospect of a breakout above the price levels before the FTX crash.
Ukraine’s government plans to launch a collection of Non-fungible Tokens (NFT) to serve as a digital museum to symbolize Russia’s attack on Ukraine; and by extension, the war at large. This move is seen by some as another of the country’s moves to finance its military activities in the ongoing war through the use of digital assets.
Alex Bornyakov, Ukraine’s Deputy Minister of Digital transformation claims the country wants to preserve history; and tell the world their story through NFTs. He furthered that the projects may take time as they want them to be popularly acceptable while making them look appealing.
According to Alex, each NFT will be gotten from reports made by trusted news outlets concerning the war. These NFTs will contain unique pieces of art from those selected stories, obtained from “trusted sources”.
This new development comes after the Ukrainian government has received about $100 million worth of crypto assistance in its official wallets. In a tweet, Alex Bornyakov appreciates those who have contributed to the crypto fund of Ukraine; while also giving a breakdown of how some of the money was spent.
The announcement of an NFT project comes after Mykhailo Fedorov, Ukraine’s Vice Prime Minister and also Minister of Digital Transformation; made known the country’s plan to stop airdrops.
This airdrop was Ukraine’s way of compensating people who have donated cryptocurrencies to aid its military activities.
The Vice Prime Minister said in a tweet that; the country has carefully considered and has decided to cancel the airdrops; citing the increase in the number of donors and volunteers as reason. That the announcement of NFTs would come soon.
Remember on March 1, the government of Ukraine using their official twitter handle announced the confirmation of airdrops; which was scheduled for March 3. Even though the details of the airdrop remain mysterious, Ukraine received over $7 million in donations following the announcement.
Airdrop is the process of sending free tokens to people to enable them to take action concerning such tokens. It usually help builds a token’s adoption.
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More and more people have looked to buy Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies across Russia and Ukraine amid the impact of war on local currencies, data shows.
According to data from crypto tracking site Kaiko, ruble and Ukrainian hryvnia-to-crypto volumes have shot up in the past week to multi-month highs.
Per the data, trading volumes denominated in the ruble-bitcoin (BTC-RUB) pair increased sharply to hit levels last seen in April-May 2021.
Ruble-denominated BTC volume soared by 1.5 billion RUB on 24 February, according to Kaiko, just ahead of the weekend’s stiffer sanctions that saw Russian banks cut off from the SWIFT system.
Ruble-denominated BTC volume. Source: Kaiko
While the ruble saw the most trading volume amid the rush to hedge against the impact of sanctions, investors in Ukraine were equally nervous. Kaiko’s Medalie said that even though still low, the bitcoin-Ukrainian hryvnia (BTC-UAH) pair spiked over the week.
Tether-ruble (RUB-USDT) and tether-hryvnia (UAH-USDT) trading volumes have also increased in respect of the invasion, the data showed.
Most of the rising volumes have been on Binance- and LocalBitcoins- which allows for peer-to-peer Bitcoin exchange.
The rising volumes are majorly driven by a rush to safe-haven assets by investors spooked by the sanctions and the potential ramifications for the ruble.
Gold, US Treasuries, USD, and the Swiss franc are among the assets to see an uptick in buy-side pressure over the past few days. Bitcoin also soared to highs near $40k over the weekend but continues to face pressure alongside stocks.
Already, sanctions have seen Russia’s ruble fall to new lows of 119 against the dollar, with the Central bank of Russia moving to adopt measures meant to defend the fiat currency from further depreciation and inflation hits.
Among these measures is Monday’s move to raise key interest rates from 9.5% to 20%, and an order to local brokers prohibiting them from providing services to foreigners seeking to sell securities.
The number of countries supporting Russia’s removal from the SWIFT payments system grew on Saturday, as the Ukraine invasion rages on. Focus now turns to whether Moscow will adopt digital assets to bypass crippling economic sanctions.
In a series of tweets, high-ranking Ukrainian officials said several countries, including France, Croatia and Italy all supported Russia’s restriction from SWIFT.
Call with my French counterpart @JY_LeDrian. France supports banning Russia from SWIFT. I urged to immediately introduce the third package of EU sanctions to stop Russian invasion. France is also ready to supply weapons and military equipment to help Ukraine defend itself.
— Dmytro Kuleba (@DmytroKuleba) February 26, 2022
Lithuania’s Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte said the West and its allies were moving closer to blocking Russia’s access, Reuters reports. Canada, the United States, Britain and the European Union also recently raised the possibility of Russia’s removal from the system, as part of more sanctions.
NATO countries had blacklisted Russia’s largest banks and several members of President Vladimir Putin’s inner circle this week. But they had held off on removing Russia from the SWIFT network, even as fighting broke out in Kyiv.
Without SWIFT access, Russian banks would have no means of legally transacting with their foreign peers. The move will apply economic pressure on the country by cutting off its access to foreign exchange, impairing its ability to engage in trade.
But doing so may push the country into adopting cryptocurrencies for overseas transactions. As it stands, regulators have no means of blocking transactions through non-centralized wallets.
European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde recently called for laws regulating crypto use in the bloc, citing the potential for Russia to use it in subverting sanctions. This comes amid growing speculation over Russia’s next move.
Crypto adoption has risen drastically in Russia over the past year. According to government data, Russian entities own roughly 12% of the world’s crypto holdings.
The government had last week proposed a bill to recognize and regulate digital assets, although it still opposed using crypto for transactions. Bans on crypto mining by hubs China and Kazakhstan has also seen miners tout Russia as the next big hub. The country’s abundant electricity supply and cold climate make it ideal for mining.
Still, the Russian central bank has widely opposed crypto adoption in the country. The lender had last month called for a blanket crypto ban, warning that the space was a large pyramid scheme that threatens financial stability.
In a more drastic scenario, Russia’s oil and gas dominance may see it leave western financial systems entirely. Former President Dmitry Medvedev said the country no longer needs diplomatic ties with the West, brushing off recent sanctions.
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Minutes after Russia announced a “special military operation” in Ukraine, effectively declaring war on the Eastern European country, Vitalik Buterin, a Russian-Canadian cofounder of the Ethethereum B blockchain, criticized Russian President Vladimir Putin on Twitter.
Buterin said on Wednesday evening that he was “very upset” by Putin’s choice to start a war instead of finding a peaceful solution to Russia’s issue with Ukraine.
Vitalik wrote in Russian on Twitter:
“Very upset by Putin’s decision to abandon the possibility of a peaceful solution to the dispute with Ukraine and go to war instead. This is a crime against the Ukrainian and Russian people.”
“I want to wish everyone security, although I know that there will be no security,” the Russian-Canadian crypto co-founder wrote, concluding his statement with “Glory to Ukraine”.
Reminder: Ethereum is neutral, but I am not.
— vitalik.eth (@VitalikButerin) February 24, 2022
On Wednesday evening, CNN reported a “constant stream of explosions” in multiple Ukrainian towns, including Kyiv, the country’s capital, and Kharkiv, the country’s second-largest city. “Subways are packed, streets are also, people [are gathering] with loved ones and [trying] to flee,” Oleksiy Sorokin, a correspondent for the Ukrainian outlet Kyiv Independent, tweeted. The Ukrainian State Air Traffic Services Enterprise declared on its website that Ukraine has also closed its airspace to civilian planes, citing the considerable threats to aviation safety in the current situation.
Buterin has spoken out on a number of occasions about philosophy, geopolitics, and the use of blockchain technology for “public goods” such as scientific research, news dissemination, and the reduction of various hazards to humanity.
Related Reading | Ruby on Rails Creator Backtracks As He Expresses Support For Crypto
Following Putin’s announcement, cryptocurrency prices plummeted. Bitcoin prices declined 3.8% to $35,031.86 on Thursday morning, while Ethereum prices plummeted 5.2 percent to $2,388.98. Over the past week, Bitcoin has dropped roughly 20%, while Ethereum has dropped 22%, undermining the premise that cryptocurrency values can withstand geopolitical crises that wreak havoc on traditional financial markets.
Stablecoins such as USDT, BUSD, and USDC, on the other hand, saw their values rise somewhat on the day. Stablecoin trading volumes have been soaring as demand for safe haven assets has risen.
ETH/USD trades at $2.5k. Source: TradingView
Apart from the cryptocurrency sector, the stock market has also plummeted, while oil prices have risen. The Russian stock market has plummeted to its lowest point since 2016. The price of oil has climbed from $60 to above $100 per barrel.
Geopolitical concerns are likely to persist for some time, putting downward pressure on these higher-correlation digital coins. As a result, investors should include heightened volatility in their calculations before considering Ethereum at this time.
Related Reading | Crypto Winter or Not, Here’s Why Index Trading Can Help Spread the Risk
Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView.com
The government of Russia is coming under more pressure to make more friendly regulations for crypto in the country. A letter sent to Russia’s finance minister by Sergey Katyrin, the head of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation (RF CCI), urged the government to recognize Bitcoin and crypto mining as a business in the country. The letter is coming after Russia has revealed plans to establish regulations for the crypto industry before the end of this year.
Russian media outlet, TASS, reports that the Russian Chamber of Commerce has suggested that crypto mining should be given legal standing as a business in the country. The letter Sergey Katryin, the head of the non-profit that represents all businesses across the country, sent to Russia’s finance minister urged that the country’s regulations should be revised to give clarity to all matters related to digital assets, especially crypto mining.
It seems necessary to make significant revisions to current legislation and also to hammer out a range of new regulatory acts that will determine in particular the legal status of the mining as a kind of business activity, making it possible to exclude this activity from the ‘gray zone, Katyrin noted.
The letter also outlined other aspects of crypto that need regulations. These include tax and other compulsory payments on crypto, the legal status of cryptocurrencies and their use as a medium of payment, and also how the banking sector interacts with crypto and crypto investors. Katyrin advised that while Russia continues to accept only the ruble as legal tender, it was practical to study the use of crypto as a “digital expression of value.”
Katyrin’s letter to the finance minister is coming after it has recently been reported that the Russian government is working on a regulatory framework for crypto. The government has estimated that crypto investments by Russians are worth over $200 billion. The Kremlin also projects that it can earn about $2 billion annually in revenue from regulating the crypto industry. The President of Russia also affirmed that the country has an advantage in Bitcoin mining.
The growth of the crypto industry has incentivized many countries to give crypto regulations serious thought. Across the world, crypto regulations are taking shape in various forms, especially relating to taxation. The IRS, the US’s taxation body, has elevated hopes for clarity by saying that it may not tax rewards earned from staking in proof-of-stake protocols until the tokens are sold. This week, the government of India equally revealed plans to tax crypto gains.
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The presented content may include the personal opinion of the author and is subject to market condition. Do your market research before investing in cryptocurrencies. The author or the publication does not hold any responsibility for your personal financial loss.
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