On June 17, the annual St. Petersburg International Economic Forum concluded. According to the organisers, delegations from 130 countries attended, with many sharing new technological developments and financial solutions.<\/p>\n
From a cascade of political statements and dubious performances, ForkLog has picked out the most important announcements and events concerning banks, cryptocurrencies and the IT sector.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Sergei Altukhov, a member of the State Duma committee on economic policy, <\/strong>said that dedollarisation<\/strong><\/a> of external trade would be achieved through cryptocurrencies.<\/strong><\/p>\n He also noted the growing role of the \u201ccryptoruble\u201d and other central bank digital currencies.<\/p>\n \n\u00abIt is prudent to consider opportunities to replace the dollar now. There will also be settlements in cryptocurrencies. In our country there already exists a market for payments using these instruments. It will be important to create the necessary legal framework so that our counterparties have the opportunity for cross-border settlements\u00bb, \u2014 added Altukhov.<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n \u2022 First Deputy Governor of the Bank of Russia Olga Skorobogatova <\/strong>said that crypto operations are blocked by unfriendly countries.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n \u00abWe see that, from the point of view of unfriendly countries, even payments in cryptocurrencies are not only monitored; many payments are blocked\u00bb, \u2014 she explained.<\/p>\n According to her words, the central bank would not want businesses to lose money from using digital assets, but is ready to test the instrument within an \u201cexperimental legal regime\u201d.<\/p>\n \u2022 Sber<\/strong>is ready to participate<\/strong><\/a> in pilot cryptocurrency operations.<\/strong><\/p>\n The bank\u2019s deputy chair Alexander Vedyakhin said the initiative is being implemented within the framework of external economic activity:<\/p>\n \u00abAs soon as the regulatory framework is formed, of course we will use these tools. Of course, Sber is interested\u00bb.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n \u2022 Ivan Chebeskov, Director of the Department of Financial Policy at the Ministry of Finance <\/strong>forecast that the DFAs market will grow to 5\u201310% of Russia\u2019s stock market volume within five years.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n He argues that the development of the market for digital financial assets in Russia is not possible without tapping the funds of Russians who invested in cryptocurrencies.<\/p>\n \u00abAmong our citizens, between 10 and 15 trillion rubles are accumulated in crypto assets; to develop the DFA market, one should compete for those funds rather than enter into competition with brokers. [\u2026] I do not think that the exchange and professional participants will sit idly by while DFAs take bread from them\u00bb, \u2014 noted the head of the department.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n \u2022 Head of the State Duma committee on the financial market Anatoly Aksakov <\/strong>said that Russian organisations will issue DFAs worth tens of millions of rubles by year-end.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n He cited data showing that such assets are currently issued for around 4 billion rubles, but they are \u201cpilot\u201d and not for profit or funding. Aksakov expected the market to develop more actively.<\/p>\n According to Rostelecom\u2019s chief financial officer Sergei Anokhin, the main advantages of DFAs are cheaper financing, instrument flexibility and the speed of deployment.<\/p>\n \u2022 PSB Group<\/strong>registered a platform<\/strong><\/a> for issuing digital DFAs.<\/strong><\/p>\n With it, legal entities and individual entrepreneurs will be able to tokenise debt obligations, precious metals, raw materials, commodities, products and services, real estate, and also attract financing from investors, said Maksim Khrustalev, director of the platform.<\/p>\n \u00abUnlike the classic capital market, the issuance and circulation of DFAs is handled solely by the platform operator; there are no other financial intermediaries, which significantly reduces the costs of organising and executing deals\u00bb, \u2014 he noted.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n \u2022 The first smart contracts with the digital ruble <\/strong>will appear in the second half of 2023<\/strong><\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n According to Anatoly Aksakov, the technology will allow the state to \u201csee more clearly and more visibly how the funds allocated are used.\u201d He also said that the bill on the digital ruble has already cleared the approvals needed for its adoption in the second and third readings in the Duma.<\/p>\n \u00abThe state can become the main driver of this process. And later, when practice is developed, it is quite possible that companies and individuals will begin to use it more actively\u00bb, \u2014 explained the deputy.<\/p>\n \u2022 Bank of Russia<\/strong>proposed reducing<\/strong><\/a> fees for digital ruble payments.<\/strong><\/p>\n First Deputy Chair Olga Skorobogatova said that the central bank could set a merchant fee for accepting digital rubles at no more than 0.3%. Currently, payments by bank cards and through the Faster Payments System average about 2.5%.<\/p>\n \u00abWe hope the State Duma will ensure the law\u2019s passage and, in July\u2013August, we will begin real operations with the digital ruble\u00bb, \u2014 emphasised Skorobogatova.<\/p>\n \u2022 VKontakte <\/strong>will launch an NFT marketplace<\/strong><\/a> by year\u2019s end.<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00abAny user will be able to mint and post their collection, run a drop, buy tokens on the primary and secondary markets. All operations will be payable in rubles. We plan to add various recommendation mechanisms so users can easily find interesting collections. The marketplace will offer promotion tools for creators\u00bb, \u2014 said Marina Krasnova, CEO.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n \u2022 In the Finance Ministry, mining was described as the \u201cwhite swan\u201d of the Russian economy.<\/p>\n According to the ministry\u2019s estimates, miners in Russia mine cryptocurrency worth about $4 billion annually. Chebeskov noted the potential taxation of such activity. By his calculations, the industry could bring around 20 million rubles to the state treasury per year.<\/p>\n \u00abI am confident that many companies are watching and waiting for the law to come into force so they can invest. Without a solution for legitimate conversion and ensuring the necessary liquidity, the industry will not breathe\u00bb, \u2014 said the managing director of fintech firm Lighthouse.<\/p>\n According to Anatoly Aksakov, the State Duma is preparing to pass four mining-regulation bills in July. He added that cryptocurrency mining could be enshrined at the state level as early as 2024.<\/p>\n \u2022 The Ministry of Energy backed the legalisation of cryptocurrency mining.<\/p>\n \u00abWe want miners, as a category of consumers, to be defined. We also hope taxation will appear for this category of consumers. It is important for us that we can identify them, and we understand that certain regulatory features will have to be introduced for them\u00bb, \u2014 said Deputy Minister Pavel Snikkars.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n \u2022 Irkutsk region raised the question of regulating mining.<\/p>\n Governor Igor Kobzev said that a law to legalise cryptocurrency mining as an entrepreneurial activity is being developed \u201cin those territories where there is enough free electrical capacity to do so.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00abMining must not come at the expense of developing production or the construction of socially significant facilities. It must not hinder economic processes in Irkutsk Oblast. Mining should be formalised as entrepreneurial activity; there are no other options. Pay taxes\u00bb, \u2014 added the region\u2019s head.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n \u2022 Head of VTB Andrey Kostin urged banks to connect<\/strong><\/a> to the Chinese SWIFT analogue.<\/strong><\/p>\n The businessman said there has been \u201ca surge in cross-border payments between Russia and China \u2014 more than 200% in the last quarter\u201d via VTB alone. Enterprises of small and medium size should benefit from the Cross-border Interbank Payment System, he argued.<\/p>\n \u00abMoreover, the yuan is the only friendly currency that can be effectively used to balance settlements for Russian counterparties with partner states in a trade surplus in Russia\u2019s favour\u00bb, \u2014 Kostin said.<\/p>\n \u2022 Head of Sberbank Herman Gref said<\/strong><\/a> that a competitor to the Mir system is needed.<\/strong><\/p>\n He said financial firms are already exploring an alternative to the National Payment Card System (NSPK) \u2014 the operator of Mir cards. However, he conceded no concrete plans yet:<\/p>\n \u00abIt would be nice if NSPK changed its status and was sold to market participants, so banks could join it. Or, in the end, another market player would emerge to enable competition and price competition\u00bb.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n During the discussion, Stanislav Bliznyuk of Tinkoff Bank joined and, by his account, another five to ten institutions might join. The NSPK head Vladimir Komlev argued that such competition would primarily benefit banks, not individuals. Deputy central bank chief Elvira Nabiullina called the idea of a second payment system an \u201coutdated approach.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00abNow we see competition among different payment methods \u2014 SBP, QR-code-based services, and the competition has intensified\u00bb, \u2014 Nabiullina observed. The NS PK and SBP are owned by the Bank of Russia, which presently owns the first.<\/p>\n \u2022 The Deputy chair of the Bank of Russia accused banks of hampering the development of SBP.<\/p>\n Olga Skorobogatova said the regulator holds \u201cconversations with business to understand the benefit\u201d of SBP in retail networks. To address this he proposed a bonus programme.<\/p>\n She added that the first deputy also reported on joint plans with CBT for biometric acquiring \u2014 payments for goods by facial recognition.<\/p>\n \u2022 Tinkoff Investments will launch broker services for children.<\/p>\n CEO Dmitry Panchenko said the project for citizens aged 14 and above would launch in July\u2013August this year \u201cwith a clean and convenient scheme.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00abWe will set some restrictions. Probably up to 10,000 rubles as a limit. For instruments, of course, no futures \u2014 only what does not require testing or compliance\u00bb, \u2014 he added.<\/p>\n \u2022 A session AI Journey was held with Sber, the AIRI Institute and Skoltech.<\/p>\n The head of the AIRI Bioinformatics group, Olga Kardimon, spoke about creating a neural network model GENA-LM trained on the complete human genome assembly. The project will assist in researching and constructing DNA chains.<\/p>\n Executive Director of Data Research at Sber, Denis Dimitrov, said that the path to AGI lies in using fundamental and multimodal models such as Kandinsky 2.1.<\/p>\n According to Skolkovo head Evgeny Buranov, AI is a natural tool for ESG risk assessment \u2014 it allows testing whether the energy transition trajectory aligns with sustainable development principles.<\/p>\n \u2022 Maksut Shadaev, Minister of Digital Development, highlighted four directions for AI development in Russia:<\/p>\n \u2022 Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko expects AI industry revenue to reach <\/p>\n 1 trillion rubles by 2025<\/strong><\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00abOf course, artificial intelligence is a very powerful tool for boosting the efficiency of routine processes. It can replace many existing, traditional professions. And more than 20% of companies in the country have already started using AI in some form\u00bb, \u2014 added the deputy.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n \u2022 LDPR ‘revived’ Vladimir Zhirinovsky<\/strong><\/a> in the form of a neural network<\/p>\n The neural network portraying Zhirinovsky is a three-dimensional blue image with blazing eyes. Creators say the artificial politician was trained on articles, scientific papers and speeches of the deceased party leader. <\/p>\n In general the AI convincingly mimicked its ‘teacher’: it mocked US President Joe Biden, sent along Gennady Zyuganov, Russia\u2019s perennial rival from the Communist Party, to the dacha, and forecast a bright future for Russia. It took the AI about 10\u201330 seconds to generate a response.<\/p>\n \u2022 Head of Sber, Herman Gref described the only problem<\/strong><\/a> facing AI in Russia.<\/strong><\/p>\n According to him, the challenge for the sector is the supply of hardware \u2014 ASIC chips and other specialised tools produced by only a few companies around the world. <\/p>\n He also proposed<\/a> allowing AI to take on some government decisions, arguing that \u201cthe technology is objective and does not take bribes.\u201d The Sber chief noted that implementing governance tasks involves two components: data and behavioural economics. In the latter case, replacing humans will be far more difficult, the executive cautioned.<\/p>\n \u2022 Promobot<\/strong> presented a robot-barista<\/strong><\/a> and an automated \u201ccybercafe\u201d.<\/strong><\/p>\n \u2022 In Kaspersky<\/strong> warned<\/strong><\/a> of data-leak risks in Russia.<\/strong><\/p>\n The managing director, Anna Kulashova, noted that in 2023 the number of such incidents could grow. According to the firm\u2019s analytics, the volumes of publicly released significant datasets of Russian organisations rose 33% from January to May compared with the same period last year.<\/p>\n \u00abArtificial intelligence is a tool, and like any tool it carries both opportunities and threats. It will be used on all sides, including attacks leveraging ChatGPT\u00bb, \u2014 she emphasised.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Kaspersky\u2019s revenue in the B2B segment rose by more than 20%, and in the B2C segment by 10%.<\/p>\n \u2022 Deputy Prime Minister<\/p>\n stated<\/strong><\/a> about the reduction of blocking of malicious sites.<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00abThe number of blocked phishing sites and those that steal personal data is decreasing. This shows that measures taken by the state are working. Yet Russia faces mass, coordinated actions by the collective West\u00bb, \u2014 Dmitry Chernyshenko explained.<\/p>\n According to Roszdravnadzor, more than 57,000 sites that illegally distributed medicines have been blocked in the country.<\/p>\n \u2022 Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Information Policy Alexander Khinshtein <\/strong>called<\/strong><\/a> blocking YouTube an premature measure.<\/strong><\/p>\n He said there are no grounds for blocking the video platform \u201cfor ten lifetimes,\u201d and noted Russia does not yet have its own platform of comparable scale.<\/p>\n \u00abUntil we have a product able to compete with YouTube in full, blocking it would be premature, in my view\u00bb, \u2014 Khinshtein said.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Meanwhile, the head of the Ministry of Digital Development Maksut Shadaev assured<\/strong><\/a> that a ban on WhatsApp \u201cis not being discussed.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2022 The Ministry of Digital Development and the Ministry of Industry and Trade<\/strong> are discussing a ban on parallel import of mobile devices from Samsung and LG.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n \u00abWe are currently discussing a ban on parallel import of heavy computer equipment \u2014 servers and storage systems \u2014 from unfriendly countries such as HP, IBM, and so on. We are also considering restrictions on parallel import of computers and mobile devices from Samsung and LG, because Chinese equivalents are not inferior. And no discussion of an iPhone ban\u00bb, \u2014 Shadaev said.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n \u2022 In talks between authorities and business about the prospects for quantum computers in Russia, a strategy was discussed on the eve of the Forum for Future Technologies in Moscow. Rosatom has been tasked with developing a quantum computer, and Russian Railways with quantum communications. The forum will run 9\u201314 July 2023 and focus on financing and developing the \u201csupercomputer\u201d technology.<\/p>\n \u00abWe are opening new technological horizons: quantum technologies, biotechnology, digital worlds and realities\u00bb, \u2014 said Ruslan Yunusov, co\u2011founder of the Russian Quantum Centre.<\/p>\n \u2022 KAMAZ chief Igor Kogogin and billionaire Ruben Vardanyan have invested about $1m each in the project \u201cAtom\u201d for electric vehicles.<\/p>\n \u00abI was a cash asset that I needed to move into the \u201ccharter\u201d of Atom. And that is how the project started\u00bb, \u2014 boasted Kogogin.<\/p>\n The chief designer of KAMAZ Sergei Nazarenko noted<\/strong><\/a> the advantages of autonomous vehicles. The company estimates that robot vehicles could run 21\u201322 hours a day with refuelling and servicing breaks. He also sees potential in automated dump trucks and tractors.<\/p>\n\n
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Mining<\/h2>\n
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Banking sector<\/h2>\n
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Artificial intelligence<\/h2>\n
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Cybersecurity and blockades<\/h2>\n
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Computers, IT and heavy machinery<\/h2>\n