Why has Russia's cryptocurrency policy shifted from "total denial" to "positive entry"?

What can turn a country from “total ban” to “cryptocurrency listed on the stock exchange”?

In 2021, the Governor of the Russian Central Bank, Nabiullina, stood in front of the camera and said with an undeniable tone: Our attitude towards cryptocurrencies is, frankly, a position of complete denial.

In December 2025, the same Russia, the same national financial institution.

The largest Moscow and St. Petersburg exchanges publicly announced: technology is ready, just waiting for the regulations to take effect on July 1, 2026.

Since then, retail investors and institutions can trade cryptocurrencies on the stock exchange. And this is a positive acceptance by the stock exchange, not a gray-area compromise.

In four years, Russia has moved from “total prohibition” to “how to manage.”

01. What happened?

In March 2025, Russia launched an “experimental legal framework” allowing the use of cryptocurrencies in cross-border payments.

In December 2025, the Central Bank issued a comprehensive regulatory framework, defining cryptocurrencies as “monetary assets.”

Today, the two largest domestic stock exchanges announced that the technology is ready to support this framework.

On July 1, 2026, the regulations will officially come into effect, initiating crypto trading.

Regulatory rules are also clear.

Qualified investors can trade without limits; this group includes financial institutions, high-net-worth individuals, and professional investors.

Ordinary retail investors have an annual trading limit of 300,000 rubles (about $3,200). This limit isn’t high, but being able to trade legally is already good.

All transactions must go through licensed exchanges, and all participants need KYC certification and anti-money laundering checks.

From a system design perspective, this is an open system under strong regulation.

02. Why now?

First, sanctions have driven diversification of financial tools.

In February 2022, Russia was kicked out of SWIFT, its dollar assets frozen, and cross-border payments narrowed.

Cryptocurrencies became a limited but real liquidity supplement, not a speculative tool, but a controllable escape window.

Second, the mining industry has become a reality.

Russia is the second-largest Bitcoin mining country in the world, after the United States. The cheap electricity in Siberia, cold climate, and idle energy capacity after sanctions have made mining a tangible industry.

In 2024, Russia legalized Bitcoin mining and incorporated it into the tax system.

Since the mined coins already exist, the questions of how to trade, how to price, and how to tax have become necessary to answer. Instead of letting these assets flow through overseas exchanges, it’s better to establish a domestic market, at least to control data and tax bases.

Third, the continuation of de-dollarization narratives.

Russia has been promoting “de-dollarization” over the past few years, increasing the proportion of RMB, gold, and rubles in reserves and trade.

Cryptocurrencies are included in this narrative. They are not a dollar substitute, but part of a non-dollar system.

Placing crypto asset trading on a national-level exchange means the Russian government considers this tool mature enough to be incorporated into the formal financial system, at least within a controllable scope.

This reveals a shift in regulatory logic, rather than a simplistic narrative of “Russia supports cryptocurrencies.”

03. From “ban” to “taming”

Russia’s approach is not about embracing free markets but about using state power to bring crypto assets into a controllable framework.

Trading is limited to licensed exchanges, participants are real-identity verified, retail limits are set, and funds are traceable across the entire chain.

This is a form of “institutionalized incorporation.” Cryptocurrencies are no longer “tools against the system” but are absorbed as financial instruments within the system.

04. Regulatory differentiation is accelerating

Globally, countries’ attitudes towards crypto assets are diverging.

The US promotes ETFs and compliance, trying to tame cryptocurrencies with capital market rules. The EU promotes MiCA, emphasizing consumer protection and financial stability.

China maintains a comprehensive ban, at least on the mainland. Russia chooses a “state-led marketization,” neither fully banning nor laissez-faire.

The divergence itself is interesting. Cryptocurrencies are no longer a binary issue of “full acceptance or total ban” but a technical question of “how to manage.”

Countries will not withdraw but will become more sophisticated.

Russia’s case shows that a country can accept crypto assets without relinquishing control.

Regulation is not about “having” or “not having,” but about “how to do it.”

As more countries realize that “banning” is both infeasible and uneconomical, they will shift toward more refined controls—entry thresholds, trading limits, tax tracking, and capital monitoring.

The decentralized ethos of cryptocurrencies is facing a positive response from state governance capabilities.

05. Some calm observations

Market conditions are bleak; probably many friends haven’t noticed this news.

Russia’s market size is limited, especially under sanctions. Retail investors are strictly limited; qualified investors are the main participants.

At the same time, “legalization” does not equal “liberalization.” Russia accepts cryptocurrencies, but in a heavily regulated manner.

This increases legitimacy for crypto but also means more regulation, real-name verification, taxation, and restrictions.

If you believe the value of cryptocurrencies lies in “censorship resistance” and “financial freedom,” then Russia’s model is actually the opposite.

But institutionalization is a long-term trend. Whether you like it or not, crypto assets are being integrated into the existing financial system.

ETFs, custody, exchange licenses, tax rules, KYC/AML requirements—all are signs of “institutionalization.”

Russia’s case is just another example of this trend.

06. Finally

Russia’s acceptance of cryptocurrencies by the stock exchange is a moment worth recording.

It is a case of how a country responds to new technology—neither outright rejection nor abandonment of control, but incorporating it into a manageable framework through institutional power.

This process will be repeated in more countries, with varying forms and degrees.