A spokesman for Russia’s president Vladimir Putin was prompted to address media speculation last night after certain sources alleged that the Russian leader is supportive of Bitcoin.
The speculation started as Russia’s president was speaking at a Youth Forum on Tuesday, saying that “the “coins”, or whatever they are called…could be used in some payment segments”.
Vladimir Putin then rushed to say he is aware of the stance of Russia’s central bank and that it is well founded, professional and rational. He also noted that there is no cover nor collateral for such “money” and that this is the problem.
Dmitry Peskov, press spokesman for Russia’s president, had to address media reports following these comments. He said Vladimir Putin was referring to virtual payments as a whole and was not supporting Bitcoin.
The stance of Russian authorities regarding virtual currencies remains negative. As per a statement by the Bank of Russia from January 2014, all sorts of dealing (issuing, mining, exchange, use for trading, etc) of virtual currencies is strictly prohibited in Russia. All types of offering of virtual currencies for exchange and trading is considered a violation of anti-money laundering rules and as means of financing of terrorism.