Rosneft Head: Cryptocurrencies could be used to purchase oil in the future

Igor Sechin, the head of Russian oil giant Rosneft, has recently disclosed that the firm can likely purchase oil using cryptocurrency in the future, although the crypto space is surrounded by a few issues which need to be sorted. According to a news report, Sechin revealed the oil industry’s acceptance and awareness of the cryptocurrency space is on the rise.

As per a report, while speaking at the Petersburg International Economic Forum, Sechin suggested that Facebook’s soon-to-be-launched Globalcoin could be used to purchase oil by the barrel in the future. However, he stated that there are a few setbacks in the cryptocurrency space that could be forcing energy giants like Rosneft away.

Sechin said:

“Greater flexibility often means greater volatility, and digitalization creates risks for maintaining commercial secrets and leads to the need to create new regulatory mechanisms, additional reservations. Today, technology companies do not have quality answers to these fundamental questions.”

Sechin's opinions seem to be focussed generally on how big firms like Google, Apple and Facebook are making moves into the energy industry. He added the skeptical note: 

At the same time, someone might get the illusion that technology giants will make the energy market fundamentally more transparent and efficient, becoming a panacea for solving the acute problems of modern times.”

If Sechin was serious about using crypto for purchasing oil, it won't be the first time that they have been linked to each other in Russia. Earlier this year, former Russian Energy Minister Igor Yusufov recommended the development of an oil-backed cryptocurrency to the State Duma, at a time in which the lower house of the country’s Federal Assembly was looking into cryptocurrency regulations.

Moreover, the Venezuelan government has launched an oil-backed cryptocurrency called the Petro to help the country avoid international sanctions and acquire access to foreign currency. The Abu Dubai National Oil company has collaborated with IBM to conduct a pilot to test the use of blockchain technology for tracking of oil.