Andrey Mikhaylishin, CEO of the local crypto payment startup Joys, said that the Russian central bank is now considering several potential options to make its crypto ban possible, Forbes Russia reported Friday.
MCC codes are four-digit numbers used by credit card processors like Visa or Mastercard to describe a merchant’s primary business activities. For example, crypto transactions are usually identified with the 6051 MCC code, while payments at grocery stores have the 5411 MCC code. According to the report, the Bank of Russia could oblige local banks to simply ban transactions with the 6051 MCC code.
Maria Stankevich, a member of the Russian Committee on Blockchain Technologies and Cryptoeconomics, said that potential MCC-based restrictions would trigger transparent businesses to leave the country while not affecting illegal crypto exchanges: “I am 100% sure if they prohibit transfers to cryptocurrency with the right MCC, then honest exchanges will leave the market in the first place.
The exec also expressed optimism about the cryptocurrency industry in Russia, pointing out that the Bank of Russia is essentially the only regulator that is against crypto adoption in the country: