Blockchain technology will be implemented in the finances and commerce within the next two years, claims deputy chair of the Central Bank of Russia Olga Skorobogatova.

Skorobogatova shared her thoughts on the perspectives of the distributed ledger technology underpinning the digital currency bitcoin with representatives of commercial banks, TASS information agency reports. The meeting was held in a hotel near Moscow.

“This technology can be employed practically in any sphere. It is interesting and its development will certainly carry on. We can keep pretending as long as we like it is not there, but, I believe, as soon as in 2017-2018 we will see actual examples of its implementation in financial, commercial and other sectors,” Skorobogatova said.

The Central Bank of Russia regards the blockchain industry as potentially suitable for adoption but only in its “closed” form, the bank’s vice head added. By “closed” she means regulation for the market and the possibility of identification of the sender and receiver. In the “open” form, she claims, cryptocurrency transactions would require anonymity and up to one hour waiting for validation.

As Marina Guryeva, deputy director of HSE Innovative Lab, told CoinFox in an interview, blockchain has inspiring perspectives in Russia. According to her, the most attractive use for the State is putting registers on blockchain, such as property ledgers.

In September 2015 Skorobogatova revealed at the Finnopolis Forum in Kazan that the Central Bank of Russia had created a special working group to research the blockchain technology and was examining the capacities of the public ledger very closely.

Last month a Moscow-based mobile payments startup Pay-Me introduced a blockchain-powered notarisation tool to improve customers’ experience.

Sonya Belova