Experts Share Thoughts Over Kremlin Bitcoin Crusade

Experts Share Thoughts Over Kremlin Bitcoin Crusade

In January 2019, the western media published many articles regarding Russian plans to buy $10 billion USD in crypto during Q1 2019. It was revealed by a Kremlin economist Vladislav Ginko as a measure of defense against sanctions. But the “expert” who shared the prediction was not the Kremlin economist. It is a man who works at an RF presidential college as a professor.

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Ginko Spreads Doubtful Predictions

Many people in Russia work in committees and “working groups” that they call “RF presidential”. Yet, this doesn’t give any guarantees that the president will listen to them.

Prof. Ginko admits he has all of those connections. He did promise that Moscow would continue its massive buyout until $470 billion was spent on crypto. This prediction was first spotted on Twitter, and then at coinspot.io, and some western journalists translated the piece into English: Micky, Telegraph, ZeroHedge, and other mainstream outlets.

But a careful study of the expert’s Twitter account shows that back in May 2018, he rolled out the prediction that Bitcoin will cost less than $100 in 2018. After a few months, Ginko changed his opinion and created a new one: Bitcoin can reach $2 million in 2019.

He continued making different predictions: that Satoshi Nakamoto is Bernie Madoff, or that bitcoin would be worth $100,000 by 2021, making many of his predictions somewhat spurious.

The RBK Asks Professionals About Their Attitudes

Now, the RBK have decided to ask a number of experts with more reliable opinions on Russian legislation regarding the possible Kremlin bitcoin and altcoin crusade. Generally, their opinion is that a total bitcoin buyout is not a tool for the current economy, but it could be in the future.

For instance, Oleg Bogdanov, chief analyst at “Teletrade Group”, points out that there are no monetary policies that allow for the storage of government assets in bitcoin, so the Central Bank of Russia will likely avoid crypto assets in the near future, even despite the sanctions.

Olga Prohorova from “The International Financial Center” admits that the whole cryptocurrency market is smaller than Russia’s current dollar reserve amount, which stands at approximately $468 billion. At press time, the crypto market cap is around $120 billion, per CoinBillboard.

“Nobody will do so … Low market volume, lack of regulation and a deficiency of custodial services in Russia will make the scenario of bitcoin-based reserve accumulation highly improbable.”

She also stressed the fact that Russia has been developing a crypto law for more than a year, which means that the Kremlin doesn’t trust digital assets. And because bitcoin lost 70 percent of its value in 2018, Russia would be more likely to buy gold or Euro, betting on their long-term stability.

The Press Turns Ginko Into a Prophet

The Singapore Castle Family Office president Eldiyar Muratov said that the Telegraph article is a part of the infowar between Russia and the West. The expert is sure that some people cook news to manipulate prices:

“The Telegraph has turned professor Vladislav Ginko into an insightful Kremlin economist. It blew up his declarations to the scale of the official country plans. The unusual idea, that Russians will convert their risks into crypto, especially at current price levels, has found acceptance in the press.”

Muratov continues to refer to the fact that many Russians understand that such news has a special kind of speculative characteristic. Russia will never convert risk into something that ethereal, because cryptocurrencies are even riskier than the dollar or Ruble, he thinks.

“The case with the Russian total bitcoin buyout as a measure against sanctions during the dollar dump process – is a big lie, which was defiantly promoted across the media community.”

Analyst from eToro social business network Mihail Mashenko thinks that the government would not want to pump the price of cryptocurrencies, hence the buyout won’t happen. In case it will, they’ll scatter it across several months to avoid any price pump. Anyway, his prediction is dark–Russia is moving further away from mainstream cryptocurrencies:

“There are two options: maybe, cryptocurrency is already bought in secrecy, and now the responsible ones are trying to manipulate prices. Which is next to impossible. Then, it may be that the process is not even started. Which sounds more like the truth. In any case, in the next couple years, we must not wait for the complete legalization of cryptocurrencies in the country.”

Government Afraid of Bitcoin’s Smart Aura

Cryptocurrency expert from “Finist”, Alex Ageev, says that the government would have to recognize bitcoin and almost all other cryptocurrencies to use it, hence, legalization is close to impossible. The idea of a bitcoin buyout is questionable.

Yet in the future, bitcoin investments may become popular, which will indicate a growth of trust in the network and its progress. However, the time for change is not now, says Ageev.

Taras Hizhnyak from the BMS Law Firm says that Russian officials have gained no experience in working with bitcoin and other coins during the past few years. He then admits that the lack of regulation, instruments of modernization, and zero experience on how to do it all, could dramatically slow down the evolution of bitcoin payments in Russia.

No Total Buyout of Bitcoin For Russians

Nobody sad that in the near future Kremlin’s dollar reserves will be converted to bitcoin. In the most possible case, it would happen after a sustainable price rush on crypto markets. Instead of hoping for leaders to pump the price, crypto users must try and focus on their own needs.

The president is already on a mission to promote fiat money, so he won’t help. The hard work on bitcoin and its ecosystem matters.

Will Russians join the crypto revolution? Do they really need permission to do so? Share your conspiracy theories in the comments section below.

Images by Jeff Fawkes