BRICS member Russia could use cryptocurrency as an official tender for trade settlements in the country bypassing the US sanctions. Russia will soon begin trials on cryptocurrency exchanges and digital tokens for cross-border transactions. The move will help ease the flow of funds into the country making its economy stay afloat. The Putin administration is looking at various ways to trample the US sanctions and the new cryptocurrency payments are one of them.
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The cryptocurrency payment trials will begin on September 1, 2024, reported Bloomberg. BRICS country Russia will use the National Payment Card System to swap its native currency, the ruble to cryptocurrency during testing of the mechanism. The experiment comes after businesses in Russia are finding it hard to sustain due to the US sanctions.
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BRICS: Russia Will Soon Use Cryptocurrency For Cross-Border Transactions
The US pressed sanctions on Russia in February 2022 for invading its neighboring country Ukraine. The BRICS alliance kickstarted the de-dollarization agenda immediately to thwart financial threats from the US. De-dollarization and the new cryptocurrency payment idea will help Russia’s economy stay afloat and BRICS is aiding the country in finding alternative payment options other than the US dollar.
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Finance Minister Anton Siluanov recently revealed that Russia will soon launch two new State-run cryptocurrency exchanges. The exchanges will be legalized to accept and send cryptocurrencies with BRICS members and other trading partners. The development will add a dent to the US dollar’s prospects as payments in the USD will reduce. Read here to know how many sectors in the US will be affected if BRICS ditches the dollar for trade.
The Central Bank of Russia will work closely with the development of the cryptocurrency exchanges enabling smoother and safer transactions. BRICS is using all ideas up its sleeve to reduce the dependency on the US dollar.