Binance Card still on its way to Russia despite local crypto payments ban

International cryptocurrency giant Binance is not going to give up launching the Binance Card in Russia despite the upcoming ban on crypto payments.

Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange by daily trading volume, is working on the rollout of its crypto debit card in Russia, a senior executive told Cointelegraph on Sept. 7.

Gleb Kostarev, Binance’s head of operations for Russia and the CIS, says that the plan to introduce Binance Card in Russia comes in line with Binance’s mission to provide all users with the “same experience that is fully compliant with local regulations.”

However, Binance is not ready to either announce the anticipated launch date or provide any legal comment on the issue so far, Kostarev noted, stating:

“We strive to provide all Binance users with the same experience that is fully compliant with local regulations. Russia for us is an important market. We are working on the launch of the Binance card in Russia, but so far we cannot designate the exact date launch or give any legal opinion on this issue at the moment.”

Announced in April 2020, Binance Card is a crypto debit card that is designed to enable payments in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC). “With the Binance Card, you can keep HODLing, and spend only what you need to make a payment,” Binance Card’s initial announcement reads.

Anticipated to be accepted in 200 regions around the world, Binance Card officially debuted in countries of the European Economic Area in July 2020. The new product will purportedly soon become available in the United States.

As the Binance Card represents a crypto payment tool by design, the product’s rollout in Russia raises some questions. In July 2020, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin signed the country’s first crypto-related law, officially prohibiting Russian residents from making payments in cryptos like Bitcoin starting from January 2021.

The newly passed law seems to have no impact on Binance’s business so far, according to Kostarev. “The adopted version of the law did not affect Binance's business in any way,” the executive said. The law “On Digital Financial Assets,” is “fairly neutral” and does not prohibit the crypto assets turnover, Kostarev explained.

The executive also outlined that the adopted version of the law “does not fully cover all aspects of cryptocurrency regulation.” However, Binance is still expecting additional threats to the industry as Russian regulators are planning to introduce another crypto-related bill and can amend passed legislation, Kostarev noted.

After passing the law “On Digital Financial Assets,” in July 2020, Russia is preparing to pass another law, “On Digital Currency,” by late 2020. On Sept. 3, Russia’s Ministry of Finance proposed a set of amendments that would ban all crypto transactions except through inheritance, bankruptcy and enforcement proceedings.