Assessment of Prospects for the Use of Decentralized Finance (DeFi) Mechanisms in Export-Import Operations in the Region

Abstract

The sanctions restrictions imposed on the Russian economy have predetermined the risks of reduced control and blocking cross-border financial channels for international payments. Under these circumstances, an important element of the state’s economic policy is the development of adaptation solutions that ensure the ability to minimize the risks associated with transformation of foreign economic activity. One of the mechanisms that forms the basis for solving this problem is the use of decentralized finance (DeFi) in the practice of international settlements. Meanwhile, it should be noted that in this area of financial and economic relations today there are a number of open issues — ranging from the conceptual framework to the impact of these fintech-innovations on the prospects for the stability of national financial systems and economic development in general. These issues acquire a special level of relevance at the regional level. The subject of the study is the prospects and mechanisms for using DeFi tools in the system of cross-border payments within the region. The object of the study is the foreign trade operations of the Republic of Tatarstan with the People’s Republic of China. The purpose of the study is to develop and test methodological approaches for assessing the potential impact of fintech DeFi tools on the organization foreign economic activity in the region on the stability of gross GRP dynamics. The authors used methods of cointegration analysis, scenario modeling, substantiation of the studied patterns using regression analysis methods, etc. The information and statistical basis for the study were derived from data from the Federal State Statistics Service of the Russian Federation, the National Bureau of Statistics of China, as well as data from the territorial statistical authority of the Republic of Tatarstan. The study resulted in the systematization of the macroeconomic effects of using DeFi technologies for organizing international payments. A series of macroeconomic models have been developed that made it possible to identify and justify the potential for economic growth in the region through the practical application of DeFi tools in the system of organizing transnational settlements under sanction restrictions.