Russia’s central bank and finance ministry are preparing legislation to establish a fully regulated domestic cryptocurrency market, four years after officials debated an outright ban on digital assets.

The draft bill, scheduled to be submitted to the State Duma as early as March, would create a formal market structure comprising licensed exchanges, digital depositories, exchangers, brokers and asset managers, all supervised by the Central Bank of Russia. The core provisions are due to take effect on July 1, 2026, The Bell reported on February 25.

The initiative marks an abrupt About face initially the Central Bank of Russia (CBR) was very wary of cryptocurrencies. However the international sanctions on Russia's use of the dollar has driven it towards introducing a digital currency that will be part of a wider network of BRICS countries’ alternative to the dollar which was showcased at the Kazan BRICS summit last year – the BRICS Pay token that is made-up from a basket of the digital versions of the leading countries’ currencies.

Since then all of the participants have been rushing through laws in order to create a legal basis for a digitized version of money. Russia passed a raft of laws last year laying the groundwork and released a phased cryptocurrency concept in December. The CBR has already run a real time test with commercial banks settling international trade deals using the new digital ruble.

The digital ruble is not a true cryptocurrency as it is issued and regulated by the regulator, not mined independently by free agents.

Nevertheless, the authorities remain cautious on introducing digital money. The Ministry of Finance argued for more regulation and a compromise, accelerated by western sanctions, has prevailed. Cryptocurrency has proved “too convenient a tool for foreign trade payments to be abandoned”, according to officials involved in the discussions, The Bell reports.

Russia overtook Kazakhstan to become the world's second-largest cryptocurrency mining country in 2023 and mining and payments were legalised in 2024. Cryptocurrency use for cross-border settlements was permitted under experimental regimes shortly afterwards. The new bill represents what First Deputy Central Bank Chairman Vladimir Chistyukhin described as an effort to “clean up” the market in comments to RIA Novosti.

Under the proposed framework, only companies holding a trading organiser licence — currently eight entities including Moscow Exchange and Saint Petersburg Exchange — would be able to operate exchanges and trading systems. A new category of digital depositories would maintain records of cryptocurrency rights, with a registry overseen by the central bank.

Cryptocurrency exchangers would be limited to Russian legal entities registered in a special registry and processing at least RUB3.5mn ($40,000) per month. They would be required to identify and block suspicious transactions or compensate clients. Brokers and management companies would operate under rules similar to those in traditional securities markets.

Individuals would only be permitted to purchase cryptocurrency through licensed intermediaries. Testing would be mandatory for all investors, both qualified and non-qualified, with results valid for one year. Non-qualified investors would face annual purchase limits previously cited at RUB300,000 ($3,500) through a single intermediary and could only buy tokens listed on Russian exchanges. Anonymous cryptocurrencies, such as Monero, would be prohibited.

Transparency requirements would be extensive. Depositories and exchangers would have to disclose data upon request from courts, the CBR, Rosfinmonitoring, the Federal Tax Service and investigators. Transactions exceeding RUB100,000 ($1,100) would require full identification of both sender and recipient. Criminal penalties akin to those for illegal banking are set to apply from July 1, 2027.

For the estimated 20mn Russians who use cryptocurrency, the legislation would effectively end peer-to-peer trading via Telegram bots and other informal channels. While existing holdings could be retained, new purchases would have to pass through state-controlled infrastructure.

The move comes as the EU prepares its twentieth sanctions package, which may include a broad prohibition on cryptocurrency transactions involving Russia. Digital assets have become a significant conduit for cross-border trade, with the A7 payment ecosystem — developed in Russia’s interests — claiming to service 19% of Russian businesses’ foreign trade transactions.

Against that backdrop, the proposed framework appears designed not only to formalise a previously grey market but also to consolidate it within a state-regulated system less vulnerable to external pressure.