Russia is considering making transactions with 'friendly' countries in national currency or bitcoin. This was stated by the chairman of the State Duma committee on Russian energy.
According to the Nasdaq, the chairman of the energy committee of the Russian Congress Pavel Zavalny, said in a press conference on Thursday (2/3/2022), Russia is open to accepting bitcoin for exports of its natural resources.
Zavalny explained that Russia is open to accepting different currencies for its exports, starting with natural gas, depending on the buyer's preferred payment method.
However, he said the terms would depend on the importing country's foreign relations status with Russia.
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"When it comes to our 'friendly' countries, like China or Turkey, that don't put pressure on us, then we have offered them for the time being to shift payments to national currencies, such as the ruble and the yuan," Zavalny said.
He added, “With Turkey, it could be the lira and the ruble. So there can be multiple currencies, and that is standard practice. If they want bitcoin, we will transact with bitcoin.”
Zavalny's remarks came after President Vladimir Putin declared on Wednesday demanding that "unfriendly" countries pay for Russian gas in rubles.
Putin's message is clear, but it is not clear whether Russia can unilaterally change the already agreed contract in euros.
CNBC data shows Bitcoin is up nearly 4% over the past 24 hours to around $44,000. The price of the cryptocurrency spiked around the time the news report on Zavalny's statement was first released.
Putin has changed his view on bitcoin. In 2021, the Russian leader told CNBC's Hadley Gamble that while he believed bitcoin had value, he did not believe it could replace the US dollar in settling oil trades.
Now, Kremlin officials see it as a form of payment for key exports. However, it is unclear whether bitcoin's lack of liquidity can support such a large international trade transaction.
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