The Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation has officially started work on the country’s cryptocurrency regulation bill with the first announcement on the Federal Legal Portal.

Russia’s Finance Ministry Starts Public Consultation on Crypto Regulation

According to reports on February 18, Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov expects the crypto law to be passed by the end of 2022.

According to the release, the ministry expects to complete a public consultation on the crypto law by March 18.

The Ministry of Finance has previously published concepts to regulate the crypto market, proposing to limit crypto exposure for non-professional investors and to place crypto infrastructure under the authority of a single “digital currency organizer.”

As of the time of writing, the bill itself has not yet been published. According to a ministry spokesman, the authorities should publish the document within the next three weeks. “The public discussion process takes place in several stages. We are currently in the initial phase of announcing the start of development,” said the representative.

The Ministry of Finance of Russia submitted two development notices on Thursday, announcing the start of the development of a legal framework for activities related to digital currency transactions and issuance.

The first notice, titled “On Digital Currency,” informs the government to launch a public consultation on the rules governing digital asset trading and invites financial market participants, citizens and legal entities to submit proposals. The second notice outlines a similar process for possible revisions of other federal laws that may require “digital currencies.”