Rosfinmonitoring, the Russian government agency responsible for monitoring and preventing financial crime in the country, is trying to expand its internal systems to take account of cryptocurrencies.
The order, reported for the first time this week by the BBC, indicates that the agency wants to strengthen its ability to monitor alternative types of transactions, including those made with cryptocurrencies. According to the publication, an improved system that collects data on cryptographic portfolios linked to certain individuals has been developed by the Moscow Institute for Security and Information Analysis (SPI), with a price of around 195 million rubles (or about $ 2.8 million).
According to documents published through an electronic auction system that records purchases and purchase requests from Russian agencies, Rosfinmonitoring should get the system updated by the end of the year.
The SPI has created other tools focusing on order forces in the past, according to the BBC. Outside of the documents, not much is known about the initiative and the SPI has not responded to a request for comment.
Rosfinmonitoring refused to disclose details about its crypto-monitoring capabilities, with its press office stating in an email that information about the system is classified.
It is perhaps surprising that the agency was urging this functionality, and its work could one day fit into a broader regulatory framework within Russia. As reported previously, the country's policy makers and legislators have gone back and forth on the issue of cryptocurrency supervision. For example, last year, it was reported that Rosfinmonitoring could play a role in monitoring transactions on regulated cryptocurrency exchanges.
However, the criteria for how such information would be added to the Rosfinmonitoring systems are not clear. In recent years, the number of people on the agency's list has been tabulated by those who have been accused of posts on social media considered to be of an extremist or anti-religious nature.
At the moment, the list of people whose accounts have been blocked in Russia due to terrorism charges includes 8,600 people. The list of entities has 485 items, most of which are various Russian religious organizations. The database also lists 101 foreign entities and 415 foreign people.
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