Russian Central Bank Mulls ‘Experimental’ Use of Digital Coins in External Payments

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Russia’s Central Bank (the Bank of Russia) executives said Monday they were open to using digital currencies as an experiment to conduct financial transactions with a limited pool of trusted partners.
Sputnik
"We think this could be possible, in an experimental way, when making external payments," Bank of Russia Governor Elvira Nabiullina said in the parliament, adding digital coins should not be used for internal transactions.
The central bank is working with the national government to identify organizations that will be eligible for international crypto transactions, Deputy Governor Alexey Guznov said.
Organizations with partial state ownership will be prioritized at the launch of the crypto experiment, Guznov told reporters, but the central bank does not rule out dealing with private entities eventually.
Cryptocurrencies in Russia are not officially accepted as a form of payment. Russian lawmakers will debate in April how to regulate the process of earning crypto tokens, known as mining.