The Legal Finality of Settlements Using Cryptocurrencies and Central Bank Digital Currencies: A Comparative Legal Analysis

Abstract

The article examines the concept of legal settlement finality as applied to two fundamentally different payment instruments — decentralized cryptocurrencies and central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). The author analyzes the absence of a statutory definition of settlement finality in Russian financial law, compares the approaches of Russia, China, India and the UAE, and studies judicial practice and doctrine. Based on a comparative legal analysis, an original definition of the legal finality of digital settlement is proposed, and liability regimes for payment process participants prior to transaction completion are differentiated in relation to cryptocurrency P2P transactions and CBDC operations.