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Latam Insights: El Salvador Proposes Using Crypto for International Settlements; First Bitcoin-Funded Company Registered in Argentina
4.8.2024
Welcome to Latam Insights, a compendium of Latin America’s most relevant crypto and economic news during the last week. In this issue: El Salvador proposes using crypto as a tool to complete international settlements with Russia, Argentina registers its first bitcoin-funded company, and...
Iran Backs Russia on BRICS Single Currency Initiative
3.8.2024
Iran plans to support Russia’s initiatives on creating a BRICS single currency and expanding national currency payments within the bloc, according to Iran’s Ambassador to Moscow, Kazem Jalali. The BRICS nations (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) are exploring the creation of a...
State Duma Financial Market Committee Leader Envisions Bitcoin and Digital Ruble Exchanges
3.8.2024
Anatoly Aksakov, chairman of the Financial Market Committee of the State Duma, the Russian equivalent to the U.S. House of Representatives, has predicted that bitcoin and digital ruble exchanges will become a reality in the coming years. Aksakov also foresees the need for digital ruble-based...
Bank of Russia Expects Wide Adoption of Digital Ruble Within 5 to 7 Years
1.8.2024
Elvira Nabiullina, the governor of the Bank of Russia, declared that she expects the digital ruble, the Russian CBDC, to achieve a high level of acceptance due to the benefits it offers to Russian citizens. During a speech at the Federation Council, Nabiullina stated that it would be widely adopted...
El Salvador Proposes Settling Trade With Russia in Crypto
31.7.2024
According to local media, El Salvador has proposed using crypto to settle trade with Russia. Alexander Ilyukhin, the first secretary of the Russian embassy in Nicaragua and head of the office in El Salvador, said the measure would simplify trade dealings, considering El Salvador recognizes Bitcoin...
Russia to Initiate Crypto Payments Internationally by Year-End, Central Bank Governor Says
31.7.2024
Russia plans to launch international cryptocurrency payments by the end of the year to counter Western sanctions, according to the governor of the Bank of Russia. The central bank is prepared to be flexible and is already discussing the conditions of this initiative with various ministries...
Russia Legalizes Crypto Mining and Brings an Experimental Regime
30.7.2024
Russia's lower house of the Federal Assembly, known as the State Duma, has passed two crypto-related laws on Tuesday, a Russia based policy expert told CoinDesk and Ria Novosti, Russia's state-owned domestic news agency reported
Russia Legalizes Use of Bitcoin for Cross-Border Payment
30.7.2024
Russia has been a paragon of adopting crypto following the sanctions it faced during the war with Ukraine. The country has been witnessing increased use of digital assets not only among its citizens but also at the government level. In line with this, the Russian State Duma Committee on Financial...
Russian State Duma Deputy Chairman: BRICS SWIFT Counterpart Needed for Creating a New Economic Reality
28.7.2024
Alexander Babakov, Deputy Chairman of the Russian State Duma, highlighted the need to create a BRICS equivalent to the SWIFT messaging system, which routes payments alongside the current banking infrastructure. Babakov emphasized that this new system would help to reduce the dependence on Western...
Russia Advances Cryptocurrency Mining Bill
27.7.2024
Russia’s State Duma has advanced a bill to regulate cryptocurrency mining, aiming to curb illegal activities and promote investment and employment. Proposed by the chairman of the Duma Committee on Financial Markets and supported by key deputies, the bill mandates strict guidelines...
BRICS Considers Iran’s Proposal to Link Payment Systems of All Member Countries, Says Russian Official
27.7.2024
The BRICS economic bloc is considering Iran’s proposal to link all member nations’ payment systems, according to Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko. The proposal aims to enhance BRICS countries’ financial sovereignty by establishing a resilient and sanctions-resistant...
Russia-Linked Banknotes Blamed for Libyan Dinar Plunge
26.7.2024
The Libyan dinar’s recent devaluation has been blamed on a flood of illicit banknotes exchanged for U.S. dollars. A report identified the Russian state money printer as a potential source of the banknotes, which the Central Bank of Libya has labelled counterfeit. Russia Linked to Illicit...
Russian-Speaking Groups Responsible for Majority of Crypto Ransomware Attacks in 2023: TRM Labs
25.7.2024
Inflows to Russia-based crypto exchange Garantex accounted for 82% of the crypto volumes that belonged to sanctioned entities internationally, the report added
Cross-Border Digital Ruble Payments May Become a Reality in 2026
22.7.2024
Generalized international settlements using the Russian digital ruble will not be available until 2026, according to statements from Anatoly Aksakov, Chairman of the State Duma Committee on the Financial Market. Aksakov stated that in 2025, authorities plan to expand the current pilot stage...
2 Foreign Nationals Plead Guilty in Lockbit Ransomware Case
20.7.2024
Two foreign nationals pleaded guilty in Newark federal court regarding their participation in the Lockbit ransomware organization, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) revealed on Thursday. Russian citizen Ruslan Magomedovich Astamirov and Mikhail Vasiliev, a dual citizen of Canada and Russia, were...
Putin Calls to ‘Seize the Moment’ to Kickstart Digital Ruble and Crypto Adoption In Russia
19.7.2024
President Vladimir Putin declared it was time for Russia to create the environment needed to increase the adoption of digital assets and the Russian CBDC, the digital ruble, as part of the country’s economic tissue. He also reported that over 30,000 transactions have been made in the pilot...
Potential Ban on Cryptocurrency Mining in Certain Regions Disrupts Regulatory Efforts in Russia
19.7.2024
The potential for a ban on cryptocurrency mining in regions classified as ‘energy deficient’ has hindered the ability to reach a consensus on the approval of cryptocurrency mining regulations in Russia. The proposed bill, which is expected to pass in August, would give authorities the power...
Vitalik Buterin warns of politicians claiming to be ‘pro-crypto’
17.7.2024
The Ethereum co-founder said he had observed the Russian government espousing crypto while acting as an authoritarian regime
Russia Considers Allowing Digital Currency Trading on the Country’s Largest Exchanges
15.7.2024
The Russian Ministry of Finance has proposed permitting digital currency trading for a select group of qualified investors on licensed exchanges like the Moscow Exchange and St. Petersburg Exchange. Anatoly Aksakov, head of the State Duma Financial Market Committee, believes Russia’s largest...
US Treasury ‘Very Attentive’ to Russia’s Use of Cryptocurrency, Yellen Says
15.7.2024
U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has addressed concerns about Russia using cryptocurrency to evade sanctions. During her testimony before the House Financial Services Committee, Yellen acknowledged the potential threat, noting that while it may not be a significant issue now, it could become...