CRYPTOCURRENCY AS A COMPLEXIBLE ASSET IN BANKRUPTCY PROCEDURES
The emergence of cryptocurrencies has become a major challenge for the regulation of civil and public law. Cryptocurrency is a new object of civil law, and its legal regime is just being formed. However, cryptocurrencies have already started appearing in court cases. The Ninth Arbitration Court of Appeal agreed with the financial manager's arguments and decided to include bitcoins in the bankruptcy estate. According to the arguments of the court of second instance, with the correct application of the principles of civil law, cryptocurrency cannot be interpreted differently than “other property”. Refusal to include it in the bankruptcy estate violates the rights of creditors. The decision of the first instance court serves as a vivid example of literalism in the interpretation of the laws prevailing in Russian justice. At the same time, the decision of the Court of Appeal shows that in certain situations related to economic disputes and the protection of creditors' rights, this literalism can be overcome within the judicial branch of government. Moreover, this can be achieved even in the absence in the written law of norms that are directly applicable to the case in question. The interpretation by the Court of Appeal of cryptocurrency as other property (from the point of view of the Civil Code) is consistent with the concept of federal law dated July 31, 2020 N 259-FZ «On digital financial assets, digital currency and on amendments to certain legislative acts of the Russian Federation».