Arkady Dvorkovich, Russia’s deputy prime minister, has claimed that there is a broad application of Blockchain technology in the country’s state administration. He declared, however, that the technology should have a legal framework in which to operate.
In his comment at the 2017 international science and technology forum held in Kyoto, Japan, Dvorkovich said that he believes the technology can be broadly used in state administration in the short term.
"I don't have the slightest doubt Blockchain technologies will find broad use in state administration in the short term. The greatest challenge for the government is to develop the regulations that would avert the emergence of a yet another fiscal bubble and would pave the road for new technological and scientific discoveries.”
Japan’s Blockchain regulation as basis
Dvorkovich further claimed that the regulation that can be implemented in Russia could be similar to the one recently introduced by the Japanese government as of early October 2017.
In early 2017, Japanese legislators have approved a law recognizing the leading virtual currency Bitcoin as a form of legal tender. In late September, regulators have granted operating licenses to 11 cryptocurrency exchanges.
Russia’s efforts to adopt Blockchain technology
The Russian government is also aggressively advancing efforts to implement Blockchain into various government services. In March, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev mandated two government ministries and a state-owned development bank to study the possible applications of the technology.
Moreover, Russian legislators are currently drafting a cryptocurrency law that is expected to be more restrictive than that of Japan. In his comment, Russian Deputy Finance Minister Alexey Moiseev has claimed that he anticipates the proposed bill to impose new restrictions on the kinds of permissible transactions.
"In any case, there is a market. It is developing rapidly, and there are certain advantages that could be used. I mean the advantages associated with attracting investments for projects through the ICO. I have a positive attitude to this, but there is another point of view. In order to make a decision, consensus will be necessary."
In the past, Russian Minister of Economy Maksim Oreshkin has compared Bitcoin price to that of MLN Ponzi scheme which could mean that whatever bill to regulate cryptocurrencies they’re going to come up with will likely undergo several scrutinies before they’re passed.