On September 17, 2025, Andrey Zubarev, Senior Researcher at the Gaidar Institute Department for Digital Finance, took part in the Conference “Digital currencies and smart contracts are the keys for digitalization of the Russia’s financial system” held at venue of the Faculty of Economics of the Lomonosov University under “Financial September” festival-2025.” The event was organized by network of partners “GlavConsultAudit” together with the Center for market research and the MSU Department of Finance.
Andrey Zubarev delivered a presentation: "Potential for bitcoin institutionalization in Russia: positioning and risks," emphasizing the relevance of the debate about the institutionalization, adoption and legalization of cryptocurrencies, which is actively underway among regulators and central banks around the world. The expert examined in detail the bitcoin's current role in the cryptocurrency market, conducted a comparative analysis of cryptocurrencies and gold and outlined the factors driving Russian investors' interest in investing in "digital gold." He paid particular attention to the barriers preventing regulators from including crypto assets in state reserves.
The conference brought together over 70 leading industry experts and became an important platform for professional dialogue facilitating establishment of a strategy for developing digital finance in Russia.