The Cabinet of Ministers approved fines for attracting investments without a license from the Central Bank

According to the document, it is prohibited to “provide services to attract investments from individuals” to those who do not have the corresponding license from the Central Bank. The fine for violators will be from 5 thousand to 30 thousand rubles, for officials – from 20 thousand to 50 thousand rubles. For legal entities, fines of 300 thousand to 500 thousand rubles or suspension of activities for up to 60 days are provided.

Penalties are also provided for attracting investments in violation of the law “On the protection of the rights and legitimate interests of investors in the securities market.” In particular, instruments intended only for qualified investors and securities whose placement is prohibited or not provided for by law cannot be advertised to an unlimited number of persons. Individual violators will face a fine of 30 thousand to 50 thousand rubles, officials (from 50 thousand to 100 thousand rubles, legal entities) from 500 thousand to 1 million rubles or suspension of activities for up to 90 days.

An administrative penalty is provided for in cases where there is no evidence of a criminal offense. Lawyers interviewed by RBC admitted that fines for illegally attracting investments from individuals could affect not only those who raise money directly, but also those who advertise investment projects, including bloggers and famous personalities.

The income of Russian bloggers registered as individual entrepreneurs has fallen by 57% since last August, according to a study by Solar Staff. Freelance bloggers, according to the survey results, lost up to 43% of their income during the year.