The Central Bank of Russia, which has long held a hardline stance on cryptocurrencies, unveiled a major proposal just before Christmas 2025: lifting the trading ban on crypto assets starting in 2026 and integrating them into a regulated financial system. According to an official statement , Moscow described this new plan as a heavily fortified "controlled laboratory." Against the backdrop of Trump's return to the White House and the accelerating global fintech race, and facing pressure from Western sanctions, the Kremlin has chosen to leverage the liquidity of crypto assets while maintaining state surveillance.
Dual-track investment threshold
The biggest highlight of the proposal is the investor differentiation mechanism. For non-accredited investors (retail investors), the central bank sets an annual trading cap of 300,000 rubles (approximately $3,846). Retail investors must complete a risk awareness test before entering the market, and their trading is limited to Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH). This limit is sufficient for small-scale speculation, but it also acts as a firewall to restrict large-scale outflows of rubles. In contrast, accredited investors enjoy no trading cap, but must still adhere to a red line: privacy coins other than Bitcoin and Ethereum (such as Monnet XMR) are completely prohibited. The regulatory message is clear—investment is open, but anonymous fund flows will not be tolerated.
The digital ruble is the key.
Despite the lifting of trading restrictions, Russia has not changed its fundamental stance on cryptocurrencies. The proposal explicitly states that crypto assets are considered "foreign currency assets" and are strictly prohibited from being used as domestic payment instruments; domestic settlements will still rely on the digital ruble issued by the central bank. According to the official timetable , the digital ruble will be fully implemented on September 1, 2026, and merchants with annual revenue exceeding 120 million rubles must accept this new currency. In other words, cryptocurrencies serve as a buffer against high-risk foreign capital flows, while the digital ruble keeps a close eye on the pulse of the domestic economy. The authorities also allow citizens to declare assets in overseas accounts, thereby bringing the underground economy into the open and expanding the tax base.
Execution schedule and geopolitical calculations
The proposal outlines a clear timeline: legislation to be completed by July 2026, and criminal penalties for unlicensed intermediaries to be imposed starting in 2027. Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina seeks a balance between high-pressure sanctions and internal capital needs, attempting to use a "semi-open" structure to gain market depth while maintaining control over currency flows. Externally, Russia can channel funds through regulated encrypted channels, reducing the risk of a blockade by the dollar system; internally, the digital ruble strengthens real-time monitoring capabilities, further enhancing the resilience of state capitalism.
From a "total ban" to "controlled regulation," Russia's strategy is not about embracing the free market, but rather about re-incorporating decentralized assets and transforming them into manipulable geopolitical pawns. If the Trump administration does indeed relax US regulations in the future, Moscow's dual-track model will become an alternative path that is state-led but still accommodates investment needs. This shift reflects a new stage in Russian economic governance: in an era of receding globalization and normalized sanctions, risk control is embedded in product design, and through quantitative thresholds and technological monitoring, "crypto freedom" is packaged into a supervised, taxable, and punitive financial component.
