Russia's Putin says cryptocurrency holds 'value' but cannot be used for oil trade

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that cryptocurrency has value but it cannot be used for oil trade, primarily due to its high energy consumption. Speaking at the Russian Energy Week in Moscow he told CNBC news that “Cryptocurrency is not supported by anything as of yet.” Buttressing his stance further, the Kremlin leader said that while Bitcoins and other digital currencies could be widely used for payments, it was “too early to say about oil trade in cryptocurrency”. 

While Putin dismissed the possibility of using crypto, he did not mince words on Moscow’s attempt to move away from reliance on the US dollar for trade. He said that the US dollar had a “competitive advantage” over other currencies and that Washington was making  a “huge mistake” in using its currency as a “sanction instrument.” Notably, Moscow recently okayed Euro as a payment method for gas trade. 

'US bites the hand that feeds it'

Speaking to CNBC in Moscow, the 69-year-old said “the United States bites the hand that feeds it.” He said that the White House was repeatedly leveraging the dollar to fulfil its political goals, often harming “strategic and economic interests as a result.” Earlier this year, Joe Biden prohibited American financial institutions from conducting transactions in the primary market for new ruble or non-ruble-denominated bonds issued after June 14, as reported by CNBC. 

In the aftermath of the new sanctions, Putin allowed the European nations to pay for Russian gas in euros. The move came after Russia said that it will completely remove the US dollar from its National Wealth Fund, which accumulates oil revenues to increase the country's resilience to market fluctuations and help support major national projects. The move is intended to counter American pressure two weeks before a scheduled summit between Putin and US President Joe Biden. 

Russia long has moved to reduce the dollar’s share in its hard currency reserves as it has faced waves of US sanctions amid tensions with Washinton and its allies. Even Russia’s state-owned energy companies have been turning to non-dollar settlements. Now, its National Wealth Fund (NWF) will also be turning its dollar-dominated assets into euros, yuan, and gold. 

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