The Federal Tax Service of Russia (FTS) has instructed regional authorities to detect violations in the purchase and sale of foreign currency, bypassing banks, in cooperation with the police. RBC writes about this with reference to a letter sent by the ministry.

The Federal Tax Service noted that the currency is now sold through social networks, Telegram channels and various other services on the Internet. The Service believes that this threatens “the stability of the currency of the Russian Federation and the stability of the domestic foreign exchange market.”

In early March, the ministry announced the suspension of currency regulatory compliance checks, but now the Federal Tax Service has clarified that this does not apply to currency speculations by individuals.

For operational control, the service turned to the Ministry of Internal Affairs. The cooperation between the two bodies aims to “detect and suppress the illegal activities of tax-exempt organizations and individuals, including those doing illegal business”.

The Federal Tax Service emphasized that foreign exchange trading is an administrative offense, bypassing the banks. For an exchange in the shadow market for individuals and legal entities, a fine of between 75% and 100% of the transaction amount is determined.

Recall that due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, part of the reserves of the Russian central bank was frozen, many countries imposed sanctions and companies left the country.

The Central Bank of the Russian Federation banned banks from selling cash and limited withdrawals from existing deposits to $10,000 from March 9 to September 9, 2022.

Against the background of the ban on foreign exchange transactions in Russia, the black cryptocurrency market intensified.