Supreme court of the Russian Federation: cryptocurrency can be recognized as a bribe

Digital rights, or tokens, can be valued as the subject of a bribe, the Russian Supreme Court explained in an addendumto the resolution “On judicial practice in cases of bribery and other corruption crimes”. According to TASS, the explanation says:

“The subject of bribery (Articles 290, 291, 291.1, 291.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation) and commercial bribery (Articles 204, 204.1, 204.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation) along with money, securities, and other property may include the illegal provision of property-related services and the provision of property rights. In cases where the subject of the bribe is property rights, the official who has received such illegal remuneration has the opportunity to take possession or dispose of other people's property as his own, demand that the debtor fulfill his property obligations, receive income from the use of uncertified securities or digital rights and more. "

At the same time, the agency explained that the tokens "must receive a monetary value based on the evidence submitted by the parties." A specialist or expert opinion may also be taken into account.

As stated by the judge of the Supreme Court of Russia Elena Peysikova, these clarifications were adopted in connection with the development of civil law.

The concept of “digital law” was included inThe Civil Code of the Russian Federation in March and began to operate in October 2019. The term replaced the word "token", which originally denoted a device for identification, and then began to be used in the IT lexicon to refer to ciphers that allow you to manage virtual assets.

Developers of a new Civil Code articlenoted that digital rights are recognized only in cases stipulated by law, and for this concept to work in practice, it is necessary to determine the signs of a decentralized information system.

Representatives of the Supreme Court also clarified that the transfer of funds to an electronic wallet can also be considered as the moment of completion of the transfer of a bribe. Peysikova said:

“Given the current economicrealities involving the use of various electronic payment systems, which are also actively used by criminals, an explanation is given that values ​​in the form of bribes can be credited not only to the account, but also to the electronic wallet. This applies to Yandex.Money, Qiwi-wallet or other payment systems that offer users electronic platforms for storing and transferring money without opening an account. ”

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