Russia's regime is defined by what the state needs crypto for. The 2020 Digital Financial Assets law legalized holding and trading while banning crypto as a means of payment inside Russia, and the central bank kept retail access to global crypto markets constricted. Sanctions changed the calculus: 2024 legislation legalized and licensed industrial mining from November 2024, with registered miners, reporting to the tax service, and regional bans where grids are strained, and a companion law created an experimental legal regime permitting the use of crypto in cross-border settlements under Bank of Russia supervision, an explicit sanctions-evasion channel.
Domestic liberalization arrived on September 1, 2026, when Federal Law No. 282-FZ, On Digital Currency and Digital Rights, took effect after passing the State Duma on July 21 and being signed on August 4. Russians may now buy and sell crypto through intermediaries regulated by the Bank of Russia; non-qualified investors must pass a test and are capped at RUB 300,000 a year per intermediary in approved liquid coins, while tested qualified investors face no cap. The domestic payments ban stays, crypto may settle foreign-trade contracts, operators have until July 1, 2027 to be licensed or registered, and officials continue to rule out legal-tender status. The digital ruble CBDC is being phased into wide use on a statutory timeline.
The licensing machinery arrived on September 24, 2026, when the Bank of Russia's first implementing acts under the law were published: Directive 7429-U on the registers of digital currency exchangers, digital depositaries, and information-system operators, and Regulation 890-P on qualification requirements for their officers, both in force October 5, 2026, when register applications open. Exchangers need minimum capital of RUB 15 million and depositaries RUB 50 million to 250 million depending on activity, licensed banks, brokers, and existing operators get a simplified track, and unregistered exchangers may keep operating until July 1, 2027.
The instruments
Digital Financial Assets law
Defines digital financial assets and digital currency, permits holding and trading, prohibits accepting digital currency as payment for goods and services in Russia, and conditions judicial protection of holdings on tax declaration.
Federal Law No. 282-FZ On Digital Currency and Digital Rights
Legalizes buying and selling digital currency through Bank of Russia-regulated intermediaries, with investor testing, an annual RUB 300,000 cap per intermediary for non-qualified investors limited to approved liquid coins, no cap for tested qualified investors, settlement of foreign-trade contracts in digital currency, and judicial protection for holders. The ban on domestic crypto payments remains, and some provisions apply from 2027.
Mining legalization and registration
Legalizes industrial mining by registered entities and entrepreneurs, sets reporting to the tax authority, permits sale of mined coins through the experimental regime, and allows the government to ban mining regionally, which it has done in energy-stressed regions.
Experimental legal regime for cross-border crypto settlements
Permits authorized use of digital currency in foreign-trade settlements under Bank of Russia supervision, created to route around payment sanctions; scope and participants are controlled by the central bank.