Russia Sets New Crypto Law Deadline

Russian parliament has finally set a timeline for the second reading of its much-anticipated package of cryptocurrency, crowdfunding and blockchain-related bills.

Per Interfax, the State Duma’s financial markets committee chairman Anatoly Aksakov has confirmed that the bills will be read in “March or early April” – almost a full calendar year after the bills cleared their first reading in the house. Aksakov had previously stated that the Duma would prioritize the bills as soon as the spring session began, but now admits that a February reading for the bills seems impossible. Readers will recall that the Duma has already pushed back the bills’ second reading several times since they were first read in the house.

The committee chairman stated that he hoped two of the three bills would be ready for President Vladimir Putin’s approval in mid-March, but that the third would likely have to wait until April. If the bills are passed according to Aksakov’s timeline, he insists they will “come into force on October 1, 2019.”

And perhaps anticipating a rocky legal road ahead for the blockchain and cryptocurrency-related legal industry, the Duma has also launched a course for lawyers wishing to specialize in fintech and crypto-related matters.

Per Delovaya Tribuna, the Duma has teamed up with a major Moscow-based university and two IT law firms to provide a training program for lawyers. The program organizers state that participants from across Russia have signed up – as well as lawyers from elsewhere in the CIS.

The program’s co-founder conceded, per the same media outlet, “There is currently no specific [blockchain and cryptocurrency] legislation in Russia, but different regulatory bodies have different stances [on the matter].”

Weekly LocalBitcoins, a peer-to-peer bitcoin marketplace, volume (in bitcoin) in Russia: