This study considers the problem of the formation of the cryptocurrency market as an element of the financial market in Russia. Our study aims at solving the problem of trust in cryptocurrency and finding new ways to use it in the Russian economy. During the study, the main trends in the development of the cryptocurrency market both in Russia and abroad were identified, the main comparative characteristics of the cryptocurrency market with other elements of the financial market were identified, and the stages of the formation of the cryptocurrency industry were explored. The purpose of the study is to identify problems in the development and implementation of the cryptocurrency market in the Russian economy against the background of an increase in the number of sanctions restrictions and currency barriers to prevent a severe economic crisis and stagnation of the country's leading industries. The main events and statements of regulatory bodies that lead to an increase in the demand for cryptocurrencies among the Russian population are considered.
The detailed analysis of the Bitcoin network and its main participants. The expert authors (Igor Makarov, London School of Economics, Antoinette Schoar, MIT Sloan School of Management) completed the study authorized by the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), the US-based private agency. The Bitcoin network is defined as a new database comprising many of public and proprietary sources to link bitcoin address to real object, and an extensive set of algorithms to extract information on market key players behavior. Three major pieces of analysis of the Bitcoin eco-system were conducted. First, the authors analyze the transaction volume and network structure of the main participants on the blockchain. Second, they document the concentration and regional composition of the miners which are the backbone of the verification protocol and ensure the integrity of the blockchain ledger. Finally, they analyze the ownership concentration of the largest holders of Bitcoin. The researchers found that 1/3 of all bitcoins issued were owned by 10,000 individual investors. They conclude that the high concentration makes the first cryptocurrency market vulnerable to hypothetical hacker attack. The translator notes that paraphrasing English text in Russian was rather challenging due to the newness of the financial agenda and introduction of the term entity extensively used in the Western countries though new to Russia. Nevertheless, it is necessary to introduce readers to the bitcoin technology which will be also practical and useful for the library and information community.
Objective: to analyze the transforming socio-economic relations of the new “digital normality”, to which end the task is solved of bringing into line the terminology used in business turnover between various participants in the digital assets market, in the practical financial activities of economic entities arising in a specific territory, in a certain legal field, and contained in the recommendatory technical documentation (standards). Methods: the article uses systematic and analytical approaches, logical and comparative methods. Results: despite the active use of distributed ledger technologies, theory and practice are currently characterized by a large number of legal and business definitions describing the organization of business processes in this area. Based on the analysis of scientific literature, the meaning of various terms of the digital economy was studied. In the course of studying technical terminology, such concepts as a distributed ledger, network nodes, blockchain, etc. were defined. The analysis of financial and economic terms is based on fintech definitions, such as digital asset, cryptocurrency, digital currency, digital financial asset, token, etc. The terms of the digital economy are considered from the perspective of so-called tokenomics, including such as token ecosystem, DLT user, DLT platform, decentralized application, etc. Scientific novelty : the terminology obtained was structured as a theoretical basis with a specification for the digital asset market and use in financial market reform. Practical significance : this review has been prepared: 1) to systematically familiarize the professional community with existing trends; 2) to harmonize socio-economic relations by developing common local recommendations (standards); 3) to develop the market for digital assets produced using distributed ledger technologies through understanding basic concepts.
A bifurcation point has arisen in the transformation of the global monetary and financial system, associated with its further digital transformation: will it be based on private digital currencies like Bitcoin, or on the basis of central bank digital currencies (CBDC)? To a large extent, this depends on the willingness of economic agents to use virtual currencies. The purpose of the study is to explore the factors determining the attitude of economic agents to digital currencies and the impact of financial literacy on using these instruments as an investment object and means of payment. The authors use the following research methods : content analysis, retrospective analysis, methods of comparative cross-country analysis, and empirical research in the form of an online survey of graduate financial students. This study is one of the first to reveal differences in the assessment of their knowledge and readiness to use digital currencies of financial and non-financial students, as well as to confirm an adequate assessment of the risks and opportunities of different types of virtual currencies if students have financial knowledge. The research shows that the situation with the decisionmaking of economic agents on the use of cryptocurrencies and the CBDC differs: in the first case, the initiative comes from the economic agents themselves, who make decisions at their own peril and risk; in the second case, economic agents are confronted with the fact of the existence of the CBDC and the need to use them. The authors conclude that the population’s low financial and digital literacy can create a mental barrier to the use of CBDC, complicating their implementation in national monetary systems. The lack of financial literacy leads to an exaggeration of their knowledge by participants in the cryptocurrency market.
Andrey Zubarev, Natalia Makeeva, Elena Sinelnikova-Muryleva, Kirill Shilov
The paper discusses various issues related to both theory and practice of the world of digital currencies. The growing popularity of the sector of services based on the technology of a distributed ledger, called decentralized finance (DeFi), is considered in detail, which has grown over the last year from 700 million to 11.5 billion US dollars. Different analogs of traditional financial and banking services are being built in this sector, in which, instead of the corresponding institutions, there is a set of smart contracts operating in an automatic mode. In addition, the paper analyzes the theoretical risks and potential benefits from the emission of digital currencies by central banks, and considers the world experience of the pilot projects of digital currencies in different countries.
Open access
Economic and Technological Developments in Russia
Economic Development and Digital Transformation
Economic, Social, and Public Health Issues in Russia and Globally
This article is devoted to the study of the economic nature of cryptoassets, the development of their original classification, and the determination of the main directions of regulation of their turnover. These topics are the objects of modern discourse of international organizations such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank (MB), the Group of 7 (G7), the Group of 20 (G20), the World Trade Organization (WTO), the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), and the Financial Stability Board (FSB). The study reviews the modern discourse of international organizations regarding cryptoassets, presents an interpretation of cryptoassets as a new class of financial assets, justifies the classification of cryptoassets, and identifies the main types and economic characteristics of digital assets. The study was conducted using a system-functional and system-structural method. As a result of this study, it is concluded that the activities of international organizations are focused on developing recommendations and principles for regulating transactions with cryptocurrencies and global stablecoins, prudential supervision of their issuers, unifying approaches to taxation, and countering illegal transactions using cryptoassets. The study concluded that crypto-assets are private digital assets that are recorded digitally in a distributed ledger and can be used as a means of exchange and/or investment tool and/or means of access to goods and services of issuer. According to the authorʼs classification crypto-assets are divided into two main types: virtual currencies and digital tokens. Virtual currencies are a means of exchange or payment as well as a means of saving. The two main subtypes of virtual currencies are cryptocurrencies and stablecoins. Digital tokens are issued for specific investment functions or consumer purposes. Tokens can be divided into investment tokens and utility tokens. The study also finds that there is no international regulation of cryptoassets turnover. National regulation is significantly differentiated between countries due to the lack of common interpretation and classification of cryptoassets and different assessments of economic risks of their turnover for national financial systems. In most developed countries: the USA, EU countries, UK, Switzerland, etc. – a flexible approach to regulating various types of cryptoassets and their issuers prevails. In emerging market countries such as China, Turkey, and Russia, regulation is more stringent and characterized by the widespread use of prohibitive measures. The main problem of the legal regulation of cryptoassets in Russia is its fragmentation and the predominance of a prohibitive bias. Modern regime of regulation of cryptoassets in Russia is weakly related to their economic nature and is not equivalent to the risks of turnover of cryptoassets.
Electronic health information exchange allows providers to healthcare providers and patients to securely access vital medical information of the patient and share it in electronically with other healthcare providers. The paper considers the electronic health system eHealth. The patient's medical records will be stored in a distributed ledger, and not on the server of the medical institution. So no one can change patient data or deny him access to his own data. The use of DAG is considered on the example of the transfer of medical patient data to the doctor. The process of creating and sending medical data to DAG is illustrated with a specific example.
The cryptocurrency market is not regulated, people and companies wishing to invest in cryptocurrency do not have the same protection as when investing in other assets. In the absence of information and regulatory laws, investors should decide if cryptocurrencies make sense for their financial goals and what kind of investment strategy to choose not to go bankrupt. The aim of the study is to determine the probability of “tail events” and to assess in this way the probability of bankruptcy when investing in cryptocurrency using the Monte Carlo method. The analysis is carried out on the period from September 1, 2014 up to July 1, 2022. Despite the fact that today there are more than 10,000 types of cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin was chosen to assess the probability of bankruptcy. The reason is that Bitcoin is the world’s first decentralized cryptocurrency and its data is stored in a long-term history, which allows testing a long-term investment strategy. Besides, Bitcoin has not gone through a period of persistent inflation that makes the result of testing a short-term investment strategy more reliable. To date, there are around 25 million Bitcoin holders, representing 42.2% of the crypto market. Almost all cryptocurrencies have been proven to follow Bitcoin. The probability of bankruptcy for a short-term cryptocurrency investment strategy is about 17%-23%. For a long-term cryptocurrency investment strategy, the probability of bankruptcy fluctuates from 13% to 16%. Contrary to popular belief, investors looking to avoid bankruptcy should prefer a long-term strategy. The best way for cryptocurrency investors to protect themselves from bankruptcy is to alternate long and short investment periods.
The article analyzes the correspondence of bitcoin, most common cryptocurrency, to the concept of "money". The analysis was carried out from the point of view of the possibility of explaining the origin of bitcoin from the standpoint of competing approaches (evolutionary, charter and debt theory) and the performance of bitcoin functions of money. It is concluded that despite the partial fulfillment of monetary functions, bitcoin is not a universal medium of exchange, i.e. money. Potentially it could reach such a state in the case if the state abandoned the monopoly on money and allowed free competition of all instruments of exchange, and bitcoin would win the competition from other possible applicants for the role of money.
The article is devoted to the study of cryptocurrency and its impact on the shadow sector of the economy. Operations related to cryptocurrencies are anonymous, so it is very difficult to control all operations, which is why it has become so actively used in the shadow economy. This raises the problem of how to control transactions and what laws should be applied to regulate the digital currency
In the context of the rapid growth of international cash flows under the influence of globalization and digitalization of the world economy, the disadvantages of the correspondent banking network for crossborder money transfers are becoming increasingly obvious. Cross-border payments continue to be largely based on the old correspondent banking model, which has not quite benefited from the flow of innovations. New technologies have the potential to facilitate fast, low-cost, transparent and scalable payments. There is a need to modernize international payment systems and to develop alternative payment instruments based on new financial technologies. Central banks and the payments industry are considering ways to improve cross-border systems. One of the most relevant and widely discussed new payment instruments is the central bank digital currency (CBDC). А consensus has been reached in the global community on the expediency and profitability of introducing this new form of fiat money into retail payments, and a large number of countries are implementing relevant projects. In contrast, the promotion of the CBDC in the field of wholesale payments is lagging behind. However, studies confirm viability of using the CBDC in wholesale cross-border payments. A number of central banks are working on wholesale cross-border payment models, and international cooperation among central banks on wholesale CBDC, including for cross-border payments, is intensifying. The article discusses how cross-border wholesale CBDC can address challenges of the existing correspondent banking arrangement. The main purpose is to analyze the results of the most advanced international projects aimed at creating cross-border payment systems based on CBDC and distributed ledger technology. The design features of the proposed payment models, their effectiveness and potential risks are considered.
Open access
Economic and Technological Developments in Russia
Digitalization and Economic Development in Agriculture
This document considers crypto currencies as a new form of economic asset that gains more and more popularity. They show elements of “money” and although are not recognized as official means of payment they can be used for selling and buying goods and services. As such, they could be considered as competitive to “fiat” money and can influence world economy and country’s national security. Alongside the positive aspects of the cryptocurrencies, they are a good foundation for illegal activities.
The growing demand for secure and tamper-proof academic credential management has exposed the limitations of traditional systems, including susceptibility to fraud, inefficiency, and dependency on centralised authorities. Blockchain technology, with its decentralisation, immutability, and cryptographic security, offers a transformative approach to issuing, storing, and verifying academic credentials. This paper explores blockchain architectures—public, private, and consortium—and their application in academic systems. Applying smart contracts and decentralised architectures, blockchain improves trust and transparency and optimises credential checking. OpenCerts and eScroll are presented, referring to existing implementations, to demonstrate possibility and impact on the real world. The study outlines issues such as scale, privacy and interoperability Lastly, the study outlines directions for future research for enhanced blockchain use in managing academic credentials globally.
Cryptocurrencies are a new technology that has given impetus to the modernization of the entire economy. Already, a huge number of people use cryptocoins for payment, participate in their production and earn on market volatility.To date, cryptocurrencies are at the stage of formation and improved versions are released annually, which try to eliminate the shortcomings in the technology. But it is already obvious to many experts that cryptocurrencies are the money of the future with great potential for development.
Pavel Baboshkin, Alexey Mikhaylov, Zaffar Ahmed Shaikh
Due to the youth of the cryptocurrency sphere, the logic of interaction between investors, users and protocols is not always precisely defined. Analysis of the impact of ESG on cryptocurrencies proves that the demand for bitcoin network capacity (occupies the main market share) is the main factor in predicting the price of this cryptocurrency and the cryptocurrency market as a whole. The choice of the statistical method of analysis is determined by the purpose of statistically justified determination of the relationship of the data under consideration, and the reliability of the analysis is checked using Fischer and Student tests. In this paper, several innovations are proposed to solve the problem of energy dependence of cryptocurrencies: firstly, the analysis of cryptocurrencies in the paradigm of sustainable development (taking into account the consumption of a huge amount of energy for the functioning of cryptocurrency systems); secondly, feedback logic to explain the interaction of subjects, including the following parties: users, developers, network infrastructure and their interaction; thirdly, statistical analysis with the creation of artificial variables from real data and iterative improvement of the model. This paper proves that sustainable cryptocurrency growth is impossible when viewed from the perspective of “Green Economics” by Molly Scott Cato. The author's approach is relevant compared to other methods of linear transformations for creating artificial variables by selecting data using the VIF test. As a result, several versions of models were obtained using various combinations of the initially proposed factors, on the basis of which the nature of the greatest influence on the price of bitcoin was established in the form of technical factors and energy infrastructure needs.
The paper investigates the empirical verification of the efficacy of investment diversification using the main stock exchange indices in the Eurozone countries and Bitcoin. The paper also investigates whether and to what extent it is desirable for institutional investors, in addition to traditional financial instruments, to invest in Bitcoin. The aim of the research is to examine whether it is justified and to what extent to include Bitcoin in the portfolio of an institutional investor. Through this research, an attempt is made to find an answer to the research question: “What share of Bitcoin in the portfolio structure is justified, taking into account the ratio of return and risk”? The analysis includes data on the daily movement of selected action indices as well as the movement of Bitcoin. The methodology involves the analysis of high-frequency data, given that daily trading data were used. The results show that it is justified to include Bitcoin in the portfolio structure. Also, the results show which share of Bitcoin in the portfolio is justified from the aspect of institutional investors. The data used in the analysis cover the period from 2019 and 2020. Two portfolios have been created, one without Bitcoin and the other with Bitcoin. The goal in optimization for both portfolios is to minimize risk. The observed period of the analysis is characterized by the crisis caused by the coronary virus pandemic and the period of active bitcoin trading. The results of the research show that Bitcoin is a good source of diversification in a portfolio that contains traditional financial instruments, both for an investor who is not prone to risk, and for those investors who have a greater appetite for risk. The conclusion is that the rational behavior of institutional investors requires consideration of investing in Bitcoin using the Markowitz model. However, given the high degree of volatility, investors should be careful when making decisions about including Bitcoin in their investment portfolio. Bitcoin is an extremely volatile instrument. Given that it is a speculative and highly volatile financial instrument, investors have different views on Bitcoin. First in terms of defining this cryptocurrency and then in terms of including this instrument in the investment portfolio. By including Bitcoin in the investment portfolio, the goal of diversification has been achieved. This is to reduce the risk of the institutional investor to a minimum. In practice, this means that it is possible to create a portfolio that carries an acceptable level of risk with the desired level of return. Given that Bitcoin is an extremely volatile and consequently - risky instrument, the expected return is also - high. The results of the research show that the cryptocurrency Bitcoin can serve as a desirable instrument for diversification of the investment portfolio when looking at a portfolio that includes stock indices. The results suggest that it is desirable to include in the structure of the portfolio a certain share of Bitcoin, about 6%.
The article considers the main factors that have a positive effect on the quantity demanded for cryptocurrency, and information is the primary one. The authors separately consider the use of Bitcoin throughout 2020 as the leading cryptocurrency on the market. The position of the direct dependence of the value of other cryptocurrencies on the behavior of Bitcoin is given. The study shows that in the modern world, cryptocurrency is not only an investment tool but also a payment instrument which gathers momentum. This is evidenced by the annual expansion of the use of cryptocurrency in the market for goods, works and services. Despite the increasing demand for cryptocurrencies, the problem of infrastructure formation remains open. In modern times, cryptocurrency exchanges appear to be a key element of the infrastructure of the cryptocurrency market, their functioning cannot be stabilized in individual states, which leads to the formation of a shadow cryptocurrency market. A significant aspect of the functioning of cryptocurrencies is the difference in the key factors affecting the cryptocurrency market and the securities market. For the first market such a factor is information, for the second – financial position of the issuer of the securities. It shows investors the difference between these segments of the financial market. In the future, with the participation of all elements of the cryptocurrency market, it is possible to form a balanced system that will function steadily under the influence of external factors.
V.E. Ponamorenko, Г. А. Насырова, Gaukhar Kodasheva, T.V. Schyukina · 5 authors
the activity of the scientific school: "Strategic management of rental rela tions" is considered. It carries out scientific research in the field of theory and methodology of rent assessment as superprofits, etc. a brief overview of the main scientific, educational, creative results and publications is pro vided. Interaction with other scientific schools, including on security issues, is also important.
Open access
Economic and Technological Developments in Russia
Economic, Social, and Public Health Issues in Russia and Globally
The article is devoted to the study of the paradigm of accounting, control and analytical information that affects the success of business processes in the corporate and state sectors of the economy. The authors propose the step-bystep development of the methodology for managing big data and the creation of corporate digital ecosystems (CECE). This includes clarifying the content of the digital ecosystem concepts as well as the development of a mechanism for collecting and processing information for corporate management (using modern digital technologies and system financial platforms) with the conclusion that the most productive is the distributed ledger technology (DIT). On the basis of a clear identification of the positive and negative consequences of scaling the CECC, recommendations were made on the technology for transferring reporting data. It has been proven that DIT offers a choice for the best scaling options, can be also applied when transferring reporting information to various higher authorities. It has been determined that the search for new and improvement of the applied technologies for managing big data is actualized as the information field expands and its diversity. The possibilities of collaboration of database management systems (DBMS) are disclosed and directions for improving the efficiency of new digital technologies for managing accounting and control information (distributed registers and their variants) are identified both for large ecosystems (the economy of the country, territories, regions, clusters and banking and other large holdings) and small (economic entities and their information technology and economic departments).
The article considers a new tool for portfolio investors - cryptocurrency. - its concept, the technology on which it is based, the advantages of this technology, the attractiveness of cryptocurrency for investors, existing investment methods, as well as a comparative analysis of the profitability and volatility of Bitcoin, Etherium, Litecoin cryptocurrencies and shares of Virgin Galactics, Nike, American Airlines. Currently, such an investment tool as a cryptocurrency is not always perceived positively, there are disagreements about its significance and investment attractiveness, many states deny and prohibit the use of cryptocurrency as a digital currency option. However, every year the popularity of this investment asset increases sharply, investors of various levels come to the cryptocurrency market, gradually some countries accept and legalize the use of cryptocurrency. The paper also presents excerpts from the unified glossary of the Eurasian Economic Commission, which considers cryptocurrency as a new investment tool, as well as a protective mechanism against the volatility of other investment assets. In the modern world, technologies are developing rapidly, new ways of investing and portfolio analysis are being born, for example, algorithmic trading, which allow the investor to adapt to the peculiarities of cryptocurrency trading.
The article presents one of the most important, in the author's opinion, manifestations of further intensification of the processes of financialisation of global financial markets, which was the emergence of decentralized digital currencies (so-called cryptocurrencies) based on blockchain technology. Their creation and existence on the global financial market have been widely considered as one of significant effect of the global financial crisis, which symbolic beginning is September 15, 2008, when one of the largest US investment banks Lehman Brothers collapsed. The worldwide COVID-19 pandemic has only highlighted the importance of this effect of financialization. The purpose of the article is to present the impact of cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin, on the deepening of the processes of financialisation of modern financial markets. Author analysis is based on statistical data, on the literature review and documents of world financial institutions.
The article examines the main stages of evolution of blockchain technologies in the activities of various companies from 1991 to the present. The aim of the article is to study the evolution of the use of blockchain technologies in the practice of different companies. The research methodology includes the use of the historical method to study the main stages of development of blockchain technologies and the study of blockchain use practices by different companies. The relationship between the stages of evolution and Tiers of Blockchain has been established: 2008-2013 (Blockchain 1.0); 2013-2015 (Blockchain 2.0); 2015-2018 (Blockchain 3.0); From 2018 to now (Generation X). The main types of blockchain (public blockchains; private blockchains; semi-private blockchains; sidechains; permissioned; distributed ledger; shared ledger; fully private of proprietary blockchains; tokenized blockchains; tokenless blockchains) are systematized. Peculiarities of practical implementation of blockchain technologies in the activity of companies of different sectors of the economy are studied. A SWOT-analysis was conducted, which revealed that blockchain technologies will undoubtedly continue to develop, affecting many industries, including public administration, retail, information technology, travel, health, education, agriculture and entertainment. One of the ways to improve the use of blockchain technologies should be: increasing the confidentiality of operations; scaling of chains of blocks; establishing compatibility between different blockchain systems; strengthening the security of blockchain operations; individual approach to the use of blockchain technologies.
The paper demonstrates that Bitcoin is not money but rather a digital commodity that has value but no value-added. We show that both the production of and the speculation with Bitcoin draw from the existing global pool of value-added. By extending the Classical Political Economy approach and the New Interpretation of the labour theory of value to the domain of digital commodities, the paper argues that Bitcoin mining is an automated reproduction process that requires no direct (living) labour and thus creates no new value. Bitcoin, in this regard, is not ‘digital gold’. Between sectors, Bitcoin mining redistributes wealth and value-added already in existence, while Bitcoin miners with more computational power compete to appropriate the mining profits within the blockchain. The Bitcoin blockchain then creates rivalry in both the ownership and the use of the digital commodity through non-legal means. Our approach can be further expanded to the larger domain of automated digital commodities that are reproducible without the expenditure of direct, living labour.
The relevance of the research topic is related to the distribution and development of a new financial instrument, aimed at studying and developing such issues as the features of the object and subject of crimes committed in the circulation of cryptocurrency in our country and in other countries, international cooperation in the field of cryptocurrency circulation and the experience of foreign countries in this direction. These questions are important not only for understanding the relationship between the use of cryptocurrencies by transnational criminals, but also for finding measures to control and prevent such cybercrimes. It is necessary to make one more note, in this final qualification work such terms as cryptocurrency, virtual currency, digital currency and digital cash will be used interchangeably to describe cryptocurrency. In the era of globalization, the accelerated development of technology, it is impossible not to notice and feel the influence of the virtual world. This virtual world, referred to as the Internet, has simplified many life processes. In the recent past, crimes were more local and less transnational