A member of Russia’s government oversight body says the country needs its own crypto-enabled bank to curb illicit transactions and support miners by providing infrastructure for cashing out their earnings.
Evgeny Masharov, part of the Russian Civic Chamber, which reviews draft legislation, told state-owned news agency TASS on Tuesday that Russia could follow Belarus’s example by launching a crypto exchange service through a major financial institution.
Masharov explained that such a move would address several issues, including bringing “shadow transactions” into the legal sphere, boosting federal budget revenue, and closing a channel used to finance and recruit citizens for serious crimes.
Russia banned crypto payments in early 2022 but has recently shown openness to the sector, aiming to facilitate international trade and circumvent sanctions linked to its invasion of Ukraine. The country has already allowed financial institutions to offer crypto products to accredited investors in May and has proposed a Ruble-pegged stablecoin as of April.
Crypto bank could support miners
Masharov suggested that a crypto bank could bolster Russia’s crypto mining sector, which currently lacks infrastructure for miners to sell their mined assets.
Since Jan. 1, Russia has banned mining in 10 of its 46 regions for six years and imposed seasonal restrictions in key mining areas to manage rising energy demands. Despite this, Vyacheslav Kopylov of local mining firm Prostomining told Cointelegraph in June that the industry continues to thrive, with Russia’s Blockchain Forum increasingly highlighting crypto mining businesses.
A tool to fight fraud
Masharov also argued that a regulated crypto bank could help combat fraud by overseeing all transactions.
“In this case, settlements in the bank must be made in cryptocurrencies, and funds credited only through the current accounts of Russian citizens,” he said. “Currently, crypto exchangers primarily credit cash to citizens’ wallets and charge a commission for this.”
In March, Masharov proposed creating a government crypto fund that would include assets confiscated in criminal proceedings.
Russian crypto industry revenue projected to grow
Despite regulatory uncertainty, Russia’s crypto sector continues to expand. Total market revenue is projected at $2.3 billion in 2025 and expected to reach $3.9 billion by 2026. Meanwhile, the number of crypto users in the country is anticipated to exceed 44 million by the end of 2026, out of a population of 143 million.
