Russia's anti-money-laundering regulators stress the need for caution in new crypto legislation to manage risks in international payments.

Parliament Reviews Crypto Legislation

According to Reuters, Russian anti-money-laundering regulators urged caution before voting on digital assets legislation in parliament on Wednesday, urging the country to speed up the development of infrastructure for cryptocurrency payments while thoroughly considering the risks involved.

Because Russian banks have grown more wary in response to pressure from Western regulators, foreign transactions with key trading partners, including China, India, the UAE, and Turkey, have been significantly delayed.

In order to keep trade flows going, parliament is set to review new legislation on July 23 that will legalize cryptocurrency transactions for foreign payments.

"This is a need for businesses, especially in cases involving sanction mechanisms, when they need to enter the international market, and it can't always be resolved through standard methods," Yuri Chekhanchin, the watchdog's chief, said.

Concerned U.S. senators have brought up the matter with the Biden administration, citing instances when countries like Venezuela exploit cryptocurrency transactions to evade international sanctions.

Chekhanchin said his watchdog should be able to stop such transactions when they violate Russian law, and he pointed out that some countries' cryptocurrency laws are permissive. The nations he was thinking about were not mentioned.

Per MSN, the new rule is not going to alter the fact that cryptocurrencies cannot be used as payment inside Russia at this time. One of the main obstacles facing the Russian economy is the difficulty in making payments, which the central bank has already acknowledged.

The usage of digital currencies was also discussed by President Vladimir Putin during a government meeting on Wednesday. Attendees were not allowed outside of his introductory comments throughout the meeting.

Putin was effusive in his praise of the digital rouble's experimental launch, an asset based on blockchain technology and supported by the central bank.

Mining Farms' Energy Usage

Putin warned that energy supply in some parts of Siberia could be threatened by cryptocurrency mining farms due to their high energy consumption. These farms have emerged in response to the cheap electricity costs in the region.

He advocated including provisions in the new law to regulate mining farms' electricity tariffs and taxes.