By Shelly Melancon (Switzerland)
How long before the regulatory heat turned on against cryptocurrencies in most countries dies down? With the way things have been panning out in the crypto space, it doesn’t seem like the regulatory heat would simmer anytime soon. Another regulation is set to be developed by Russian legislators, empowering financial authorities to confiscate and lay claim to cryptocurrencies obtained via illegal activities.
Russia joins a host of countries slugging it out with the adoption of cryptocurrencies as amendments are underway on the Digital Financial Assets (DFA) legislation. Reports have it that the proposed amendments will ensure that cryptocurrencies are seized if they were ever obtained from any unlawful activity.
Russian Prosecutor-General Claims Cryptocurrencies Are Being Used for Corruption
The announcement was made by Russia’s prosecutor-general, Igor Krasnov while speaking at a conference on July 7. Krasnov argued that cryptocurrencies, especially Bitcoin have now become a major tool in corruption and bribery cases. He further asserted that cryptos are now being used to launder siphoned budget funds. At the European prosecutors’ conference, Krasnov alleged that the illegal adoption of cryptocurrencies has constituted an almost insurmountable challenge to Russia.
Thus, there will be a need for a framework to prevent this, of which he admitted that the DFA law is aiding its efforts in this regard. However, according to the prosecutor-general, an extra layer of protection is necessary, which the proposed amendments would make possible. The amendments would allow for the implementation of preventive measures and seizing of digital assets.
Also read:In contrast, Russian crypto stakeholders opined that no number of laws would empower the authorities well enough to confiscate digital assets. A Russian lawyer, Nikita Soshnikov argued that it will be untenable for Russian regulators to lay claim to illegally obtained cryptocurrency since they are stored in digital wallets unlike other assets.
Soshnikov however admitted that Russian authorities were able to seize certain amounts of Bitcoin, which were proceeds from bribes after a Russian court discovered that some FSB officials were guilty of bribery. As reported by Soshnikov, Russia’s plans to begin confiscation of cryptocurrencies dates back to 2019, even before the DFA law was implemented.
Krasnov was initially the deputy chairman of Russia’s Committee of Investigation until last year when he was made the prosecutor-general of the country. Krasnov has been forcefully outspoken against cryptocurrencies while claiming that internet crimes are usually aided and abetted by crypto and have peaked by 25-fold since 2015. Late last year, the prosecutor-general proposed a declaration of digital assets by government employees in the country.
US Denies Russia’s Role in Ransomware Attack
In a related development, Russia was fingered as being responsible for a cyberattack on the cloud service of US software firm, Kaseya, which in turn affected the networks of over 200 US companies and thousands of stores across the continents connected to Kaseya’s services. While the US FBI has denied Russia’s role in the incident, President Biden threatened that more investigations would be carried out to determine Russia’s role in the attack. The group of hackers called REvil had demanded $70 million in BTC to reverse the ransomware and restore things to normal.
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