Bitcoin will sooner or later become the international reserve currency par excellence. We have taken another step in this direction with the Russian Ministry of Finance and the Central Bank proposing together to conduct international transactions in BTC.
Bitcoin to bypass the SWIFT network
Russian authorities have been interested in bitcoin for some time. Russian business daily Kommersant already revealed in February that the government was trying to offer “by February 18” bill to recognize bitcoin as a “foreign currency”.
This interest has increased since Washington and Brussels disconnected Russia from the SWIFT network and frows equal to $600 billion of the Russian Federation.
But we sometimes have the impression that the whole world is waiting to see what the United States Congress will do, which is studying two bills aimed at regulating bitcoin and all its pastiches (shitcoins). Not to mention the European Parliament and its pale copy called MiCa.
In March, the chairman of the energy committee of the State Duma, Pavel Zavalny, said for his part that the country was not against accepting bitcoin as payment for Russia’s natural resources:
“When it comes to our ‘friendly’ countries, such as China or Turkey, which do not pressure us, we have been offering payment in national currency, such as the ruble and the yuan, for some time. […] With Turkey, it can be liras and rubles. […] If they want bitcoin, we’ll trade bitcoin.”
The Russian news agency TASS reports today that the Ministry of Finance and the Bank of Russia are of the opinion to legalize international payments in Bitcoin (and other cryptocurrencies). Deputy Minister of Finance Alexei Moiseev stated this on the Russia-24 TV channel:
“When it comes to regulating the cryptocurrency market, the difference remains in the approach. But I can say that the Central Bank has also been redesigned [l’approche], considering that the situation has changed. The infrastructure we were planning is too rigid for the use of cryptocurrencies in cross-border settlements, of course we have to legitimize it in some way first. »
According to him, the Ministry of Finance and the Central Bank have agreed, under the current conditions. “it is impossible to make international transfers in cryptocurrencies”arguing that things need to be clarified on a legal level.
By the way, let’s also remember that Gazprom is definitely interested in the possibility of mining bitcoin thanks to the gas that is currently burned because it cannot be stored. The advantage would also be that methane emissions that are not completely burned on the flares (due to the wind) would be reduced.
We will finish by reminding that the central bank of Iran already uses bitcoin to pay for its imports. Stateless, uncensorable and non-inflationary, bitcoin has been carved out to serve as an international reserve currency and offer an alternative to the monetary weapon that the petrodollar has become.
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Journalist reporting on the Bitcoin revolution. My papers deal with bitcoin through geopolitical, economic and libertarian prisms.
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