Five new licensed digital asset issuers have emerged in Russia.
According to the Russian business news outlet RBC, the Central Bank of Russia (CBR) has registered Distributed Registry Systems and its Masterchain platform in its list of information system operators authorized to issue digital financial assets (DFAs). The CBR has previously registered four other issuers, including Sberbank and Alfa-Bank, the two largest state-owned and private banks in Russia, respectively. Lighthouse, a fintech firm, and Atomyze, a tokenization service, have also been included in the register.
Distributed Registry Systems, established in April 2021, is an IT company that specializes in developing blockchain-based solutions for various industries, including finance, transport, and logistics. It is supported by several large Russian banks, the Moscow Stock Exchange, and the Association “Of Fintech.” The company plans to initially issue digital financial assets for the rights to monetary claims in the form of either unsecured bonds or structural instruments linked to various assets. The press release also stated that the company would launch other types of DFAs on its platform in the future.
Recently, Moscow Credit Bank, Russia's largest private regional bank, issued the country's first digital bank guarantee in Chinese yuan using the Master chain platform.
In January 2021, Russia passed the law “On Digital Financial Assets,” which regulated DFAs. However, decentralized cryptocurrencies like bitcoin remain unregulated. In February of this year, the State Duma, Russia's lower house of parliament, approved a bill on first reading that would allow financial platform operators to develop and manage blockchain platforms.
With Western sanctions imposed over the invasion of Ukraine, including financial restrictions, there has been an increase in support in Moscow for legalizing at least some crypto operations, such as cross-border payments.
In conclusion, the Central Bank of Russia has added Distributed Registry Systems, an IT company that specializes in developing blockchain-based solutions, to its list of authorized operators for issuing digital financial assets. The company plans to issue digital financial assets initially for rights to monetary claims and launch other types of DFAs in the future. Moscow Credit Bank recently issued Russia's first digital bank guarantee in Chinese yuan using the Masterchain platform. While DFAs are regulated in Russia, decentralized cryptocurrencies like bitcoin remain unregulated. However, the State Duma has approved a bill that would allow financial platform operators to develop and manage blockchain platforms. With Western sanctions in place, support in Moscow for legalizing some crypto operations, such as cross-border payments, has increased.
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