Russian Finance Minister: ”Government already trading in Bitcoin... with plans to expand”

Russia is actively experimenting with digital financial assets in foreign trade in accordance with national legislation, a senior government official said on the 25th (local time).
Russian Finance Minister Ibn Siluanov discussed ways to replace the US dollar in international trade in an interview with state-run news channel Rossiya-24.
"Russia has all the legal means to use digital financial assets (DFAs) and Bitcoin in foreign trade," he said.
The government and DFA have passed legislation to allow Bitcoin to be used in foreign trade transactions, and such transactions are already in place. We plan to further develop and expand this."
"In the current circumstances, it makes a lot of sense to use the DFA as an alternative to the US dollar in foreign trade. This will allow us to take advantage of modern infrastructure," Siluanov said in an interview.
"This is a way to make payments," he said, adding, "This is an innovation in the global payment system. This is the future." Minister Siluanov said Russia will begin accepting payments under the experimental legal framework, which came into force in September 2024.
"We can pay for the delivery of goods with digital financial assets. Also, Russia will be able to use Bitcoin freely for foreign trade under the DFA," he said.
"These transactions can also be made using Bitcoin mined within the federal government," he added. "All of these transactions will be conducted in accordance with the Russian legislation," he said, referring to Russia's legalization of Bitcoin mining earlier this year.
"It's happening now. We insist that this needs to be developed and expanded, and we are confident that next year this will become a reality."