The Moscow Stock Exchange (MOEX) is drafting a bill to allow trading of digital financial assets (DFA) and securities based on them, according to a report in the Russian press. The stock exchange is drafting the bill on behalf of Russia’s Central Bank, which does not have the power to introduce legislation, Vedomosti newspaper reported on Thursday.
Speaking at a banking conference, MOEX Supervisory Board Chairman Sergei Shvetsov said that the bill under preparation provides for trading in both DFA certificates and DFA certificates that will be traded as securities. “The exchange and its subsidiaries will apply to the regulator and I hope they will receive the status of exchange operators” to trade with DFA, Shvetsov said. Added:
“We want the market to make its own choice between blockchain accounting and depository accounting, and if the law is passed, Russian depositories will be able to hold DFA in their blockchain accounts, as soon as the client needs the underlying asset, redeem the certificate and receive the asset in their account on the blockchain.”
Lack of familiarity is an impediment to distributed ledger technology in Russia, according to Shvetsov. “When you don’t know who to call and who to sue, many people don’t want to participate”, he said, but “It’s a blank sheet where we can draw whatever we want, according to the needs of the economy.” and investors”.
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Shvetsov said the bill is currently under review by the Central Bank of Russia. State Duma finance committee chairman and head of the Russian Banking Association Anatoly Aksakov suggested in July that MOEX become a crypto exchange, following the examples of the Toronto Stock Exchange and Deutsche Boerse.
A MOEX spokesman said in August that the exchange expects DFA trading to be allowed. “It is in the interest of our clients,” said MOEX International Chief Strategy Officer Artem Zheleznov.
