Tokens and Stablecoins in the System of Digital Financial Assets: Foreign Experts’ Position

Introduction. The rapid development of IT technologies is one of the factors of digitalization of economic systems and the emergence of qualitatively new objects, including digital financial assets (DFAs). Given the novelty and recognition of their high potential, DFAs are of great theoretical and practical interest to Russian and foreign scientists and specialists, which is why the issues of defining the essence of DFAs, their classification and legal regulation are currently important and topical.

The purpose of the article is to analyze the works of foreign specialists on the issue of DFAs and their role in the modern world economy with the aim of identifying the potential of their application in the Russian financial system.

Methods. In order to correctly understand the essence of DFAs, theoretical studies and methodological developments presented in foreign literature were analyzed. In the case of Russia, the term ‘digital financial assets’ is not identical to that of ‘cryptocurrency’, which requires taking into account the relevant differences in terminology. Thus, in the research and practice of US specialists, it is accepted that everything that has any digitized cryptographic form is a crypto-asset.

Results. The study has revealed the differences in the composition of objects categorized as digital. The differences have become established in the domestic and international practice due to peculiarities of applied terminology. Classification criteria for digital assets have been defined, which include the type of use (valuation metric or accounting unit) and the functionalities in relation to the activity of a business entity. This approach made it possible to distinguish cryptocurrency and tokens as separate types. It is shown that cryptocurrencies are the only type in the DFA classification that can be used as a means of payment, which contributes to their great popularity. Stablecoins are considered as a separate type of cryptocurrency. The importance of digital assets has been determined in terms of enhancing financial investment, expanding the access to safer and more affordable financial services, as well as their usage for cross-border payments. The latter is of significant interest for domestic business, also in relation with the current sanctions and restrictions on the movement of capital and cash flows.

Conclusion. Along with their potential, DFAs carry significant risks. In this regard, public financial institutions must be both technically and legally prepared to work with digital assets in order to prevent conflicts of interest between partners from different jurisdictions, which may arise due to differences in the legislative and regulatory frameworks of the respective markets.