Russia Drafts Bill Allowing 37M Citizens Limited Crypto Access by 2026
Russia is taking a major step towards making it easier for people to buy and sell cryptocurrency in the country with a draft bill...
Quick overview
- Russia is drafting a bill to allow ordinary investors to trade cryptocurrency, with a cap of 300,000 rubles per person.
- The legislation aims to treat cryptocurrencies like other financial tools, easing restrictions while maintaining government oversight.
- Professional traders will not face investment limits, and the bill will also enable cryptocurrency for international payments.
- The proposed law reflects growing interest in digital assets in Russia, with major exchanges preparing to enter the crypto market.
Russia is taking a major step towards making it easier for people to buy and sell cryptocurrency in the country with a draft bill that allows ordinary investors to trade, but not too much. The legislation is being drafted with the help of Anatoly Aksakov, the chairman of the State Duma’s Financial Markets Committee. This bill is looking to get passed in the spring parliamentary session.
If it eventually gets the green light, the bill would take cryptocurrencies out from under the special rules meant to keep them under control in Russia and treat them like any other financial tool. That’s a big deal, and it shows the country is getting more serious about letting people use digital assets as part of their everyday finances, as long as the government keeps a close eye on things.
Investment Limits for Retail Traders
As part of the proposed rules, ordinary investors are only allowed to buy and hold up to 300,000 rubles worth of cryptocurrencies – about 3,800 bucks. On the other hand, any “pros” who trade on the markets will be able to do as they please with no limit. This won’t let things get too out of hand, and there will be checks in place to make sure that people are being smart about how they invest in this stuff.
Some of the key features of the draft bill are:
- Any ordinary investor who buys cryptocurrency is capped at 300,000 rubles’ worth.
- On the other hand, all the big traders will be exempt from these limits.
- The rules will also allow people to use cryptocurrency for international payments.
- To prevent shady dealings, the rules will also prevent people from conducting anonymous cryptocurrency transactions.
Russian officials are hopeful that this new law will make it easier for companies to raise capital overseas and help the country build its financial infrastructure.
Market Readiness and Social Interest
Cryptocurrency is getting a lot of attention in Russia right now. In 2025, the country’s Social Fund got millions of questions about digital assets – questions like whether people could get their pensions paid out in cryptocurrency, and how mining income affects benefits. But the key thing is that people need to remember that all government payments will still be in rubles, and it’s worth noting that the Federal Tax Service decides how to tax cryptocurrency trades.
The idea behind this new law is that the country is simply following the market. Moscow Exchange and St. Petersburg Exchange – the two big exchanges in the country – have said they plan on getting into the crypto trading business as soon as the new rules are in place next year. The Bank of Russia also said it was planning to draft rules on how all this will work back in December 2025. So far, everyone thinks this is a pretty big deal, but still a pretty controlled one – and it’s a good sign that Russia is willing to try and make digital assets a part of the mainstream while still keeping a close eye on things.
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