With cryptomats at the ready – Newspaper Kommersant No. 199 (7400) of 10/26/2022

Against the backdrop of growing interest in cryptocurrency, the number of physical devices that allow transactions with it is increasing. The number of cryptomats in Russia has already exceeded five dozen. There is a demand for the service, although the exchange conditions are not very favorable. However, lawyers note that the terminals are in the “grey zone” and it is not clear how the rights of citizens will be protected in case of problems.

The number of cryptomats has increased in Moscow, Kommersant correspondents noticed. According to RusBit, which is installing them, 14 new cryptomats have appeared this year, and the total number in the Russian Federation has reached 52 pieces. Cryptomats allow you to exchange cash or non-cash money for a cryptocurrency (bitcoin, ether, etc.) with its transfer to a crypto wallet that the client must have. It is also possible to convert virtual currency into fiat currency either in a non-cash form to a bank account or in cash. But there may be a restriction on the volume and types of withdrawn cash currency, in particular, it is impossible to withdraw cash from Russian cryptomats.

RusBit considers the installation of cryptomats completely legal. “Digital currency is a digital product under the law “On Digital Financial Assets…”, in addition, cryptomats are connected to the OFD cloud cash desk (fiscal data operator that transmits data from cash registers to the Federal Tax Service.— “b”), reports are submitted to the Federal Tax Service in a timely manner. During the passage of a special military operation, all Bitcoin addresses are verified through the KYC system (“know your client.”— “b”), customers are being verified, limits have been reduced,” the company explained.

However, lawyers believe that the work of cryptomats is still “in the gray zone.” Ksenia Petrovets, senior associate at Birch Legal, says that the current legislation does not provide for such a category as “digital goods”. “Operations for the exchange of digital currency for fiat money or other cryptocurrencies are in the gray zone and are neither directly prohibited nor directly regulated,” the lawyer clarifies.

According to the lawyer of KSK Group Alexander Sharapov, the legal structure of interaction between the seller of the cryptocurrency and the buyer is not clear, therefore it is not clear what legal acts should regulate such relations. Moreover, atLegal partner Pavel Ganin notes, there is no clear procedure for protecting consumer rights at the legislative level in case of problems. The head of InDeFi SmartBank, Sergey Mendeleev, admits that the situation “may end in the same way as with BBFpro crypto ATMs, which were confiscated by the Central Bank.” In August 2018, according to RBC, during an inspection by the Prosecutor General’s Office (based on a letter from the Bank of Russia) BBFpro 22 cryptomats were seized from it.

The demand for the services of cryptomats arises due to the complexity of the process of buying cryptocurrencies for ordinary citizens, when you need to look for p2p sites, register accounts on English-language resources, go through the KUS or search for an exchanger on the Internet, explains Roman Kaufman, co-founder of Berezka DAO. According to UNCTAD, the share of Russian citizens who owned cryptocurrency at the end of 2021 was 11.9%, that is, more than 17 million people. But Sergei Mendeleev estimates the maximum number of Russians “drawn into crypto-trafficking” at 500,000 people.

At the same time, cryptomats offer unfavorable exchange conditions. The Kommersant correspondent purchased a small share of bitcoin through a cryptomat. The purchase rate amounted to 1.494 million rubles, which is 10–14% higher than in online exchangers. At the same time, the funds have not yet reached the crypto wallet (according to the interlocutors of Kommersant on the market, the transfer takes place within a day). But the minimum amount when crediting through a cryptomat is 200 rubles, while in Internet exchangers it is 2.5–5 thousand rubles. RusBit expects that up to 1,000 terminals will be installed in Russia in 2023, although experts consider such plans to be overly optimistic.

Ksenia Kulikova