Exved, one of Russia’s pioneering cross-border payment platforms, has officially launched its services, allowing local legal entities to engage in international settlements using cryptocurrency. Describing itself as a “digital counterparty search system,” Exved aims to simplify foreign exchange operations and foreign economic activity for Russian importers and exporters. The platform facilitates business-to-business (B2B) transactions, with a focus on cross-border transactions using the Tether (USDT) stablecoin, alongside the offshore ruble and the U.S. dollar.
Exved’s launch is a significant development, providing a solution for Russian legal entities to conduct cross-border payments without intermediaries and at minimal market rates. The platform ensures compliance with Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Counter-Terrorist Financing (CTF) measures, exclusively catering to legal entities.
According to Exved’s announcement, the platform’s initiation involved collaboration with key industry partners, including InDeFi Bank, known for launching the decentralized crypto ruble project in the previous year. Sergey Mendeleev, Co-founder and CEO of InDeFi Smart Bank, shared insights into Exved’s internal mechanics, highlighting the approval received from the Central Bank and the Federal Financial Monitoring Service of the Russian Federation.
Mendeleev emphasized the project’s private initiative, designed to showcase the potential of reducing transaction costs from 6-7% to 2-3%. The platform offers specific mechanisms for implementing payment requests and aims to demonstrate the efficiency of cross-border payments using cryptocurrencies.
The launch of Exved aligns with the agreement reached in September 2022 between the Russian central bank and the Ministry of Finance, permitting cross-border settlements in cryptocurrencies. The move reflects a growing trend towards embracing digital currencies for international trade within the Russian financial ecosystem.