State Duma passed a law on investment platforms and crowdfunding

The draft law on raising funds through crowdfunding platforms was adopted in the last reading by deputies of the State Duma. It will come into force on January 1, 2020.

In accordance with the law, all investment platforms are subject to the regulation of the Bank of Russia. In addition, the document establishes the basic requirements for such sites and their operators. In fact, besides classical crowdfunding, this law will also regulate sales of tokens (ICO).

According to the law, the investment platform is a system on the Internet used to enter into capital raising contracts. The ways of investing through such sites are the purchase of securities, structural bonds and utilitarian digital rights, as well as the provision of loans.

Non-professional investors in total can invest no more than 600,000 rubles per year in total on all Russian investment platforms. At the same time, individuals registered as individual entrepreneurs are not subject to this restriction.

For private entrepreneurs and legal entities, organizers of campaigns to raise funds, there is a limit on the amount of funds raised during the year – it cannot be more than 1 billion rubles. At the same time, public joint-stock companies (PJSC) are not limited to this amount. According to the law, operators of investment platforms can be Russian companies that are included in the register of the Bank of Russia and have their own funds of at least 5 million rubles. The law will come into force on January 1, 2020.

This week, Anatoly Aksakov said that the draft law on the regulation of cryptocurrency will be adopted before October 1. He also noted that at the moment there is only one of the twenty draft laws that have been approved by the Cabinet of Ministers as priorities in this area.