A representative from the Russian Finance Ministry has proposed that the country should develop its own stablecoin.

The deputy head of the Financial Policy Department has stated that Russian officials are looking into the possibility of developing a national stablecoin that would be akin to USDT. This development follows Tether’s decision to freeze over $30 million in USDT linked to Garantex, which stopped its operations and highlighted Russia’s dependence on stablecoins controlled by foreign entities. To enhance its financial independence, Russia’s Finance Ministry has put forward the idea of creating a national stablecoin. As reported by Reuters on April 16, Osman Kabaloev, the Deputy Head of the Financial Policy Department at the Finance Ministry, highlighted the importance for Russia to create “internal tools akin to USDT,” which could be backed by currencies other than the dollar. He stated, “We do not impose any limitations on the use of stablecoins within the framework of the experimental legal regime.” Kabaloev stated that recent advancements have indicated that this tool may pose dangers to us. Stablecoins will be supported by globally accepted assets such as gold, making them suitable for international transactions. As noted in a report from March, the U.S. Department of Justice, along with authorities from Germany and Finland, has frozen domains associated with Garantex. Officials claimed that since its inception in 2019, the exchange has facilitated the movement of more than $3 billion in illegal funds. Tether, the leading stablecoin provider, has also suspended digital wallets on the Russian crypto exchange Garantex, which has resulted in the freezing of assets valued at over 2.5 billion roubles, equivalent to $28 million. This came after the European Union placed Garantex in its 16th sanctions package against Russia, highlighting the exchange’s links to sanctioned Russian banks and its role in helping to evade EU sanctions. In response, Garantex suspended all services, including withdrawals, and issued a warning that “all USDT in Russian wallets is now in jeopardy.” In April 2022, the United States had already imposed sanctions on the exchange due to its involvement in enabling criminal activities, such as ransomware attacks.