The economist called the Russians a key change in the cryptocurrency market in the country

The law on the legalization of cryptocurrencies, adopted by the State Duma, removes digital assets from the gray zone, recognizing them as property, not money. Denis Astafyev, an entrepreneur, fund manager and founder of the SharesPro fintech platform, told about this on Wednesday, July 22.

According to the expert, this sets transparent rules of the game, but does not make investments safe, as market and technological risks remain on the investor's side.

"The key point of the innovations is to recognize cryptocurrencies as property. Now we are not talking about freedom of circulation, but about the rules of ownership, storage, taxation and control of transactions. The state sets a transparent framework for market participants, but legalization does not make such assets safe at all," the economist explained in a conversation with Lenta.Ru .

The expert noted that now it is permissible to buy cryptocurrency mainly through organizations included in the register of the Bank of Russia — exchanges, brokers, licensed exchange operators and digital depositories. He warned that anonymous exchangers and P2P transactions with unknown counterparties become very risky and can lead to funds being blocked by the bank. At the same time, credit institutions will more carefully analyze transfers related to cryptocurrency and have the right to refuse to make a payment if there are doubts about the legality of the source of funds, he added.

"Asset storage remains the personal responsibility of the owner. When transferring to a personal wallet, it is critically important not to lose the seed phrase and not pass it on to anyone. For amounts over 100,000 rubles, a cooling—off period of 48 hours is introduced — this gives time to cancel the operation if it is carried out under the influence of fraudsters," Astafyev warned.

He recalled that the direct ban on the use of cryptocurrencies as a means of payment within Russia remains, with an exception made only for foreign trade settlements.

In addition, the expert warned that no regulatory measures eliminate the underlying risks, and the investor still bears them independently.

"A reasonable approach is to use only legal purchase channels, carefully store keys, record all transactions for tax accounting and soberly assess the level of risk," the economist concluded.

Know for a coin: the 300k limit will affect only 10% of Russian crypto investors

What else will change after the adoption of the law on digital currencies

On July 21, the State Duma adopted a law that for the first time introduces comprehensive regulation of the circulation of digital currencies and digital rights in Russia, the Moscow City News Agency reports.

The new rules establish working rules for digital depositories, crypto exchanges and other market participants, RT reports. The document defines the conditions for the purchase of cryptocurrencies by investors and regulates relations related to the accounting and storage of foreign digital instruments, as well as mining.

The law covers the activities of information system operators issuing digital financial assets, brokers, management companies, clearing organizations and organizers of trades.

According to the accepted norms, only organizations included in the special register will be able to carry out digital currency exchange activities. 360.ru . At the same time, companies are allowed to operate without registration in the list during the transition period — until July 1, 2027. The minimum amount of own funds for such organizations should be 15 million rubles.

Deputy Finance Minister Ivan Chebeskov announced on June 16 that unqualified investors in Russia will soon be able to legally buy bitcoin, ether and popular stablecoins. In addition, the deputy minister clarified that a limit of 300 thousand rubles per year through one intermediary was proposed for non-shareholders.