Russia’s Finance Ministry and central bank are reportedly urging the government to accelerate crypto regulation as digital asset adoption surges, with officials estimating that citizens are spending nearly 50 billion rubles (about $648 million) on crypto each day.
According to a Thursday report by RBC, Deputy Finance Minister Ivan Chebeskov stressed the need to formalize oversight of the market, noting that the bulk of crypto activity currently flows through largely unregulated channels.
“We have always said that millions of citizens are involved in this activity — these are trillions of rubles in use and in savings from the point of view of citizens,” Chebeskov said during a digital assets panel at the Alfa Talk conference.
“Also, for example, one of the figures, about 50 billion rubles per day is the turnover of crypto in our country. That is a turnover of more than 10 trillion rubles per year, which is now happening outside the regulated zone, outside our attention.”
The 50 billion rubles in daily trading volume cited by Ivan Chebeskov translates to about $648 million per day, or roughly $129.4 billion annually — underscoring the scale of crypto adoption in Russia as the country continues to navigate sweeping economic sanctions imposed by the US and Europe.
The European Union has recently voiced concerns that Russia may be using digital assets to sidestep sanctions. According to a Feb. 10 report from the Financial Times, EU officials are pushing to “ban all cryptocurrency transactions with Russia” as part of a new sanctions package.
Meanwhile, in late December, the Central Bank of Russia unveiled a policy proposal that would allow both qualified and non-qualified investors to purchase certain crypto assets — a notable shift from its earlier calls for a blanket ban on cryptocurrencies.
Under the proposal, non-qualified investors would face a strict annual cap of 300,000 rubles (about $3,834) in crypto holdings. Qualified investors, however, would have broader market access, excluding privacy-focused coins.
Speaking at the same Alfa Talk panel as Chebeskov, Vladimir Chistyukhin, first deputy chairman of the Central Bank of Russia, said he hopes comprehensive crypto regulations will be passed during the spring session of the State Duma, Russia’s lower house of parliament.
“We would very much like the government to see the law adopted in the spring session,” Chistyukhin said, adding that such a move would provide a transition period for market participants to secure licenses, draft internal compliance documents and formally legalize the sector.
