New Russian laws to penalize the use of crypto with fines and imprisonments?

• Several bills in Russia have been moved to the parliament seeking to ban the use of crypto in the country. 
• Citizens using BTC in financial transactions could reportedly face up to seven years in prison or fines up to $7000.
• If enforced as law, the only way Russian citizens can hold crypto is by declaring it to the authorities.

Russian lawmakers have proposed new laws that seek to ban the use of cryptocurrencies in the nation, as per a Forklog report. According to the draft bills submitted by deputies to the Russian parliament, individuals using BTC in financial transactions could face up to seven years in prison or fines up to $7000. Citizens will also be penalized for purchasing crypto with cash. 

If enforced as law, the bills will punish firms that issue or carry out operations in digital currencies without approval from the central bank with fines of up to two million rubles (about $28,000). Additionally, “for violation of the rules for transactions with cryptocurrencies, if they are used as payment for goods or services,” firms would have to pay around one million rubles ($13,900) and individuals around 200,000 rubles ($2,800). 

In all cases, the crypto involved will be confiscated by the government. The only way Russian citizens can hold crypto is by declaring it to the authorities. Interestingly, this comes at a time when major exchanges like Binance are entertaining the Russian market. 

According to a Bitcoin.com report, Dmitry Kirillov, a senior tax lawyer at Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner, said: 

People who currently own cryptocurrencies will be forced to get rid of them before the law comes into force or risk “going underground.” Goals that will be achieved this way are the direct opposite of what’s being declared. In general, the idea of ​​dropping a crypto “Iron Curtain,” in my opinion, does not contribute to the development of businesses or Russia’s interaction with the world economy on a digital level.