December 13, 2017 8:20 PM
An aide to Russian president Vladimir Putin has reportedly pitched the idea of using cryptocurrencies to circumvent sanctions.
Sergey Glazyev, an advisor to President Vladimir Putin, has said that sanctions levied against the country have created an “objective need” for cryptocurrencies, which he implied could be used to skirt the punitive measures. He made these remarks at a meeting in which Russia’s presidential administration was attempting to determine the legal status of digital assets, according to the Rambler News Service. The official also reportedly suggested that the state use virtual currency to make “sensitive” purchases. His statements follow Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev’s move to sign a decree allowing purchases by certain government bodies to be classified as state secrets.
By using cryptocurrencies, “We can, irrespective of sanctions, conduct settlements with our counterparties around the world,” Glazyev said, according to a translation.
Rambler also related that the presidential advisor voiced his support for the creation of a centralized, state-issued virtual currency, the cryptoruble, explaining that such a financial instrument would essentially be “the same ruble, only its movement [would be] limited in a certain way, it [would be] arranged in a certain way.”
Conversely, Russian presidential candidate and business magnate Boris Titov recently stated that plans to develop the digital asset have been abandoned.
Quotes translated from Russian using Google Translate.
Adam Reese is a Los Angeles-based writer interested in technology, domestic and international politics, social issues, infrastructure and the arts. Adam is a full-time staff writer for ETHNews and holds value in Ether and BTC.
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Source: ETHNews