The Russian government has approved a comprehensive package of draft bills that fundamentally reshapes the domestic cryptocurrency landscape. The legislation, announced by the Ministry of Finance, aims to legalize the circulation of digital currencies and digital rights but under a tightly controlled state framework.
The core of the new regulatory framework is a mandate that all transactions involving digital currency must be conducted through regulated intermediaries. This effectively prohibits peer-to-peer or unlicensed crypto trading within Russia. The package establishes a licensing regime for entities involved in crypto operations, including digital exchanges and custodial services. Banks and brokers will also be permitted to participate, but only if they comply with specific prudential requirements set by regulators.
The legislation introduces significant restrictions for retail, or non-qualified, investors. To participate, individuals must first pass a test. Their annual purchases are capped at 300,000 rubles (approximately $3,700) per year through a single licensed intermediary. Furthermore, retail investors will only be allowed to purchase "the most liquid digital currencies," a list to be defined and approved by the Bank of Russia.
In a notable concession, the proposal does not completely ban access to foreign markets. Russian residents will still be permitted to buy cryptocurrency abroad using foreign accounts, provided they report these transactions to domestic tax authorities. This signals Moscow's intent to domesticate and tax crypto activity rather than enact an outright prohibition.
The legislative package also amends Russia's administrative offenses code, introducing liability for violations by organizations engaged in exchange activity without proper licensing. This is part of a broader push to police and eliminate unlicensed crypto intermediation.
However, the move has drawn criticism from industry figures. Sergey Mendeleev, founder of Exved, argued to Cointelegraph that Russia is moving against a global trend of liberalization. "At a time when the rest of the world is moving toward liberalizing access to equity markets through tokenization, we are, for some reason, doing the opposite by pushing crypto into a framework of securities market regulation," he said. Mendeleev warned that the rules could backfire, pushing activity into unregulated online and underground venues, similar to what happened with casinos.
