Recently, Russia has been articulating the legal concept of blockchain economy in general and cryptocurrency in particular. The Federal Law No. 259-FZ On Digital Financial Assets, Digital Currency and on Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of the Russian Federation dated 31.07.2020 and coming into effect January 1, 2021 is one of the important instruments for the purpose. Financially and legally, many countries define cryptocurrency differently, therefore, creation of a regulated approach to digital economy calls for expert opinion and international experience.

To solve the above problems, the Russian-wide public organization Investment Russia established the Commission on Blockchain Technologies and Crypto Economy.

The Commission includes representatives of international cryptocurrency exchanges (Binance, EXMO, CoinBene, OKEX, Bingbon), the international blockchain consultancy company Colibri Group, the international blockchain rating agency and disclosure platform Xangle (Cross Angle), international blockchain projects (ARPA, Bella Protocol), IT projects (Coindar, Quube, SalAd lab), state organizations, and also legal industry professionals (Digital Rights Center and Roskomsvoboda). Nikolai Gadzhiev, VEROS FP fundraising platform and WIDCI charity initiative founder, is the Commission Chairman. Gleb Kostarev of the global leading exchange platform Binance is the Co-chairman.

During the cooperation with state organizations, the international professional experience of the Commission members will help promote the most effective implementation of the blockchain technology in Russia.

Commission aims:

Cooperation

Active cooperation with national regulatory and industry-specific organizations on establishment of a uniform approach to the creation and perfection of the digital economy.

Proposal development

Development of proposals and creation of initiatives aimed at establishment and perfection of the crypto economy and blockchain technology regulatory framework for national regulatory organizations.

Assessment

Attraction of representatives of the leading digital projects from the blockchain technology realm to work in the Committee and interact with cryptocurrency assets, establishment of expert assessment and improvement of the regulatory framework in Russia.

Communication

Establishment of communication and interaction within the community that forms the blockchain technology and crypto economy sector.

Status assessment

Assessment of the current regulatory framework and efficiency of the national measures aimed at regulation of the use of blockchain technologies and development of crypto economy in Russia.

Experience application

Studying of the international practices of regulating the use of blockchain technologies, development of crypto economy, and the legal standing of cryptocurrency assets.

The Commission’s formation, establishment, and working model are a crucial step towards creation of balanced regulations and a sustainable Digital Economy.

Commission members have been actively developing a bill for further consideration by the State Duma of the Russian Federation. The bill aims to amend the Federal Law No. 259-FZ On Digital Financial Assets, Digital Currency and on Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of the Russian Federation so as to establish a more loyal legal environment for natural persons and businesses in Russia.

Experience of Colibri Group, Coindar, Xangle, the Managing Team, and Partners

Yan Khavanskiy, Nik Anikin, and Maksim Sukhonosik will bring their international experience, consulting practices, and analytical data gathered during the years of stable operation of projects they manage. They will also broaden the interaction and communication by provision of the research and applied experience of Colibri Group, Xangle, and partner companies.

Operations of Colibri Group include a number of companies from the realms of auditing, tax and management consulting, accounting outsourcing, corporate law, POS equipment, accredited service centers for POS equipment, certification center for issuance of digital signatures (including cryptography operations licensed by the Federal Security Service), and related businesses.

Colibri Group personnel are members of the all-Russian NGO of small and medium business Opora Russia and speakers and consultants on POS equipment of the Federal Tax Service of Russia. A number of operating directions of companies under Colibri Group are accredited by the national initiative for entrepreneurial support My Business started by the Ministry of Economic Development of Russia. Products of the subsidiary companies are available in over 40 representative offices in Moscow and Moscow region. This will allow for better consideration of the operational, commercial, and state sector experience during the discussions and developments related to digitization, implementation of the cutting-edge technologies, and the respective regulatory work within the Commission.

Colibri Group considers the blockchain sector its priority direction and harnesses international resources for it.

Colibri Group is a blockchain consultancy company partnered with globally popular projects. Maksim Sukhonosik and the blockchain rating agency Xangle (Cross Angle) are the strategic partners representing Colibri Group in Singapore and South Korea. AGH and a number of popular blockchain projects and cryptocurrency exchanges represent it in China. Colibri Group owns Coindar.org managed by Yan Khavanskiy. It is the first cryptocurrency event calendar. It also ranks first in the industry. As of December 2020, it ranks No. 16,000 globally and is one of the most visited websites. It even used to be more popular than Product Hunt and some developments by Facebook. TheNextWeb, Bitcoin.com, Cryptopolitan, CoinDesk, Investing.com, and other leading industry media refer to Coindar and Colibri Group. Their partners include ARPA, Bella Protocol, Bingbon, Cocos-BCX, Gather Network, Gate.io, HotBit, Algorand, Waltonchain, and dozens of other projects. Colibri Group CEO Nik Anikin is Director for Russia and the CIS for ARPA and Bella Protocol. He helps the two projects and technologies behind them (including Multi-party Computations) scale in the Russian-speaking countries. Recently, ARPA team together with the National Radio and Television Administration of China (one of the biggest national mass media administrations globally) has become a co-author of the White Paper on Blockchain Application in Radio, Television, and Internet in China.

 

Xangle is a cryptocurrency disclosure platform striving to solve the information asymmetry by ensuring the transparency and supervision vital for the industry.

Xangle is a unique product for all participants of the cryptocurrency industry:

1. 1. 1. 1. Blockchain projects: with disclosures of the officially approved information for holders and regulatory institutions.
         2. Digital asset platforms: aggregated information on projects to ensure the most complete analysis and risk management.
         3. Investors: access to the status of the projects in portfolios.
         4. Corporate sector: auditing and credit rating services.
         5. Media: swift, accurate, and updated information on blockchain projects.

Such a valuable experience will let the Commission better analyze the international practices of the blockchain industry, especially regarding the industry regulation.

Commission’s website: https://investros.ru/innovation_eng