Russia has appointed a new Prime Minister - Mikhail Mishustin. The former head of the Federal Tax Service of the Russian Federation (FTS) repeatedly spoke out about cryptocurrencies and blockchain.
Back in 2016, Mishustin gave an interview to the Russian information television channel RT, in which he expressed knowledge in the area: “The tax service is interested in blockchain technology. First, we can’t change your document in any way, it means, it's protected. As far as I know, several departments are already working in this direction."
In 2018, in an interview with the Vedomosti newspaper, answering a question about what modern technologies the Federal Tax Service is handling, Mishustin said: “The former cashing systems don't work any longer. But other schemes emerged, basically linked to cash-in platforms that employ entirely different derivatives, for instance, cryptocurrencies. We are now looking at quasi-money, special payment systems through which businesses and people try to avoid taxes. They think about it all over the world.” So, Mishustin sees in cryptocurrencies fictitious money, which is a tax evasion tool.
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In the same interview, the head of the Federal Tax Service voiced his attitude towards the issue by the central bank of its digital currency - the digital ruble: “This is a question for the Central Bank. But, of course, you need to think about how to prevent the creation of an alternative system that is not related to the state.”
On December 12, 2019, Mishustin gave an interview to Kommersant, in which, among modern technologies that deserve attention from the Federal Tax Service, he noted cryptocurrency and blockchain: “Let's list: biometrics, big data, biotechnologies, 3D printing, mobile applications, cryptocurrency, electronic payments, blockchain, high-density image, Internet of things, smart dust, mixed reality, augmented reality, artificial intelligence, digital doubles.”
Of course, we don’t know anything about Mishustin's cryptocurrency portfolio, but we can surely state that he has learned what blockchain is many years ago.